[Inside Chodong] The Nursing Act Must Prioritize the Field and Patients First

by Jo Inkyung

Published 02 May.2023 10:49(KST)

As the Nursing Act bill passed the plenary session of the National Assembly, internal conflicts within the medical community have escalated to an extreme level. With doctors and nursing assistants announcing simultaneous partial strikes such as 'annual leave struggles' starting from the 3rd, it is highly likely that almost all healthcare professional organizations, except for nurses, will participate in the strikes one after another, causing the government to also express concerns about chaos in the medical field. On the other hand, nursing organizations have also sharpened their stance, stating they will respond strongly if the president exercises a veto on the Nursing Act bill.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

When asked about the atmosphere by a nurse at a university hospital, she cautiously predicted, "(Because public opinion is sensitive) there will be no medical crisis such as postponed surgeries or canceled treatments." However, she added, "Once the doctors' association strike begins, it looks like only nurses will suffer more (become busier)." Another ward nurse said, "This Nursing Act bill excludes immediately feasible improvements in treatment and instead includes controversial issues," and added, "As a nurse, I support the bill, but honestly, right now I just want to sleep a little more and avoid overtime."

The general public, who are the direct beneficiaries of medical services, do not know much about the Nursing Act and thus cannot take sides. Over the past couple of months, there have been numerous opposing views such as "In the future, nurses will be able to open hospitals independently" and "Nurses will infringe on the work areas of clinical pathologists, radiologists, health information managers, and emergency medical technicians," as well as incitements like "The Nursing Act will accelerate medical privatization and make the public's old age more insecure," making it impossible to know the actual content of the law or which side is correct.

The Nursing Act has been steadily discussed and proposed since the 17th National Assembly in 2005 but was repeatedly defeated. After the 21st National Assembly convened, discussions resumed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with increased emphasis on improving the treatment of healthcare workers and the growing need for out-of-hospital care services in response to aging. In May last year, the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee produced a Nursing Act bill by combining proposals from ruling and opposition party lawmakers, but it was held up in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee for several months. It was only in February this year that the bill was directly submitted to the plenary session, and ultimately, at the end of last month, it was forcibly passed in the National Assembly plenary session led by the opposition party.

However, during this process, efforts to supplement the detailed enforceability of the Nursing Act and to reconcile various interests were omitted. Ultimately, although it was a long-standing wish of nurses and an issue that could gain sufficient public consensus, it was used as a political tool by both the ruling and opposition parties because it was easy to politicize among various livelihood bills, which diluted its purpose and incited unnecessary conflicts. Before even debating who is right or wrong, the public sees this incident as a numerical battle between medical professions and a fight over turf between doctors' and nurses' organizations.

Given the reality that many patients need care and working conditions are harsh, with half of the nurses leaving medical institutions despite holding national licenses, it is clear that improving the treatment of nurses must come first to enhance the quality of medical services. This applies not only to nurses but also to all healthcare professionals, including doctors and nursing assistants. While it is understandable that each medical professional organization advocates for their interests and demands their rights, it is unacceptable to choose actions that hold the lives and health of the public hostage under political influence.