Jung-gu Council Urges Measures to Address Medical Service Gap Following Paik Hospital Closure

Seoul Jung-gu Council Issues Statement Urging Measures to Address Medical Service Gap Following Baek Hospital Closure

The Seoul Jung-gu Council (Chairperson Gil Gi-young) issued a statement on the 3rd in the main assembly hall expressing concern over the medical service gap caused by the decision to close Baek Hospital and urging the establishment of countermeasures.

Following the relocation of Chung-Ang University Hospital in Pildong in 2004 and the closure of Jeil Hospital in 2021, the recent decision on the 20th of last month to close Seoul Baek Hospital has raised anxiety and concerns about a medical service gap within the local community.

Seoul Baek Hospital was the only university hospital in Jung-gu and served as a dedicated infectious disease hospital, playing a pivotal role in the district’s medical services.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it functioned as an essential medical institution, responding swiftly to disaster situations, and as an emergency medical facility located in the urban center, it managed urgent medical demands, protecting the lives and safety of residents.

Especially in a situation where a pandemic could arise at any time, the absence of Baek Hospital, which provided essential medical care, could lead to violations of the community’s and residents’ right to health, making it necessary for the local community, medical sector, and local government to actively prepare countermeasures.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and Jung-gu Office have announced plans to review the designation of the Seoul Baek Hospital site as an urban planning facility and to discuss related procedures.

Jung-gu Council Chairperson Gil Gi-young, Vice Chairperson Yoon Pan-oh, and council members Lee Jeong-mi, Jo Mi-jung, and Song Jae-cheon stated in the statement, “Essential medical services directly linked to residents’ lives and health must be guaranteed to be provided stably under any circumstances and must be fully met within the local area.” They added, “We urge the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Jung-gu Office to minimize the medical service gap that may arise after the hospital closure and to thoroughly establish and firmly implement measures to prevent the absence of public medical functions from causing harm to the community and residents.”

◆ Full Text of the Statement

Thoroughly Respond to the Medical Service Gap Crisis Following Baek Hospital Closure to Protect Residents’ Lives and Safety.

Seoul Baek Hospital, which opened in 1941 as ‘Baek In-je Surgical Hospital,’ is disappearing into the annals of history after 82 years. Following the relocation of Chung-Ang University Hospital in Pildong in 2004 and the closure of Jeil Hospital in 2021, the closure of Seoul Baek Hospital has raised serious concerns about the medical service gap that will affect the local community.

Seoul Baek Hospital was the only university hospital and infectious disease dedicated hospital in Jung-gu.

In Jung-gu, where the resident population is low compared to the floating population, Baek Hospital served as a regional emergency medical institution providing care during nights and holidays, acting as a pillar protecting residents’ lives when emergency patients occurred. Additionally, due to its central urban location with high accessibility, it met medical demands of pediatric patients and vulnerable groups, fulfilling the essential role of safeguarding life and safety.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it actively responded to the national disaster situation as an infectious disease management institution, managing 80% of confirmed cases in Jung-gu requiring home treatment, substituting for the National Medical Center, which serves as the infectious disease control tower.

Even the National Medical Center, the higher-level hospital in the district, is facing a significant reduction in its project scale due to the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s decision in February and is preparing to relocate. Residents and the local community are deeply concerned and anxious about the repercussions of the medical service gap following Baek Hospital’s closure.

The closure of Baek Hospital, which functioned as a key pillar of medical services in Jung-gu, will lead to a decline in residents’ satisfaction and quality of life, accelerating population decline and intensifying urban hollowing. Furthermore, the absence of a general hospital that played an intermediary role as a secondary medical institution will not only be a problem for Jung-gu but will also spread as an issue in the Seoul metropolitan medical system.

After Baek Hospital’s closure, emergency patients will have to be transferred to tertiary hospitals such as nearby Seoul National University Hospital or Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, causing disruptions. This will exacerbate patient concentration in university hospitals and could lead to imbalances in medical services across Seoul.

At the 3rd plenary session held on the 22nd, the district office announced plans to respond to the medical service gap by establishing close cooperation with hospital-level medical institutions in the district and partially utilizing beds at the National Medical Center to accommodate emergency patients. On the 20th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government expressed agreement with reviewing the designation of the Seoul Baek Hospital site as an urban planning facility and conveyed its intention to review administrative procedures based on consensus that hospital facilities should be located there.

Essential medical services directly linked to residents’ lives and health must be guaranteed to be provided stably under any circumstances and must be fully met within the local area.

Representing 120,000 residents, the Jung-gu Council urges the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Jung-gu Office to minimize the essential medical service gap that may arise after Baek Hospital’s closure and to thoroughly establish and firmly implement measures to prevent the absence of public medical functions from causing harm to the community and residents.

July 3, 2023

All Members of Seoul Metropolitan City Jung-gu Council

(Gil Gi-young, Yoon Pan-oh, Lee Jeong-mi, Jo Mi-jung, Song Jae-cheon)

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