Welfare Minister Cho Kyu-hong Meets with President of Nurse Assistant Association on Hunger Strike... Ongoing Nursing Act Efforts

President Gwak Ji-yeon Transferred to Hospital
"Nursing Act Is Not the Optimal Solution"
Calming the Health and Medical Community
Efforts to Minimize On-Site Confusion

On the afternoon of the 30th, Cho Kyu-hong, Minister of Health and Welfare, visited Kwak Ji-yeon, president of the Korean Association of Assistant Nurses, who had begun a hunger strike in opposition to the enactment of the Nursing Act, urging her to stop the strike and recover her health. Since the Nursing Act was passed at the National Assembly plenary session on the 27th, Minister Cho has been taking steps to mediate conflicts in the health and medical sectors and minimize confusion on the ground.

Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong visited Kwak Ji-yeon, president of the Korea Assistant Nurses Association, who was on a hunger strike in a tent in front of the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 30th, inquiring about her health condition. [Image source=Yonhap News]

During the meeting with President Kwak, Minister Cho said, "It is regrettable that there has been no consultation even among nursing personnel regarding the Nursing Act, shaking trust and cooperation between professional groups." He added, "Health is important to fulfill the duties of assistant nurses, who are the first to meet patients when they are ill. Please stop the hunger strike and take care of your health." He also emphasized, "The regulation that sets an upper limit on the academic qualifications of assistant nurses must be improved." President Kwak was transported to the hospital by ambulance upon the recommendation of Minister Cho and the doctors present at the scene.

The day before, Minister Cho visited Seoul Nursing Home in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to listen to the difficulties faced by nursing staff and care workers, and checked whether nursing and care services at long-term care facilities were being carried out smoothly following the passage of the Nursing Act. Seoul Nursing Home is a facility directly operated by the National Health Insurance Service, employing 7 nurses, 5 assistant nurses, 7 social workers, 4 physical therapists, and 77 care workers, providing long-term care services.

Minister Cho stated, "For the comfortable elderly life and health of seniors who need medical and nursing services, organic cooperation among various professions such as care workers, nurses, assistant nurses, and social workers is important." He added, "Although there are concerns about confusion in medical and care fields following the passage of the Nursing Act in the National Assembly, all professions will trust and cooperate with each other under the goal of public health." In particular, he emphasized, "It is very important to establish a care and nursing system to properly care for our parents, and the fundamental method for this is innovation through the revision of the Medical Service Act, not the enactment of the Nursing Act, which is not the optimal alternative."

Furthermore, on the 28th, Minister Cho visited the Emergency Medical Center at Yonsei University Severance Hospital to inspect the medical field, continuing his active efforts following the plenary session approval of the Nursing Act. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has issued a 'concern' level alert for the health and medical disaster crisis and formed an emergency situation inspection team to prepare response measures to minimize confusion in medical sites, as the health and medical sectors opposing the Nursing Act have announced plans for a general strike. Minister Cho’s direct efforts to appease the health and medical sectors and actively express opposition to the Nursing Act are interpreted as steps to minimize confusion in the medical field.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.