Seoul Baek Hospital with 82 Years of History to Cease Medical Services on August 31... Strong Backlash Expected

Inje University Seoul Paik Hospital, which was decided to be closed through a board meeting, will provide medical services only until the end of next month before shutting its doors.

On the 7th, Seoul Paik Hospital announced, "After gathering opinions from each affiliated hospital and conducting internal discussions, it has been decided to end all medical services by August 31."

Inje Foundation decided to close Seoul Paik Hospital at the board meeting held on the 20th of last month. It was determined that management was no longer feasible due to a cumulative deficit reaching 174.5 billion KRW. The Inje Foundation stated, "We received management consulting from an external professional institution and analyzed and discussed all alternatives, including maintaining the hospital, converting it into a specialized hospital, operating a screening center or outpatient center, and running a nursing hospital, but concluded that none were effective."

The exterior view of Baek Hospital in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 20th, when the board meeting regarding the closure of Seoul Baek Hospital was held. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Following the final decision to end medical services, the hospital will inform outpatients, inpatients, and patients with reservations about the end date of medical services as well as related matters such as treatment and issuance of various documents. For inpatients, support will be provided for transfer to other hospitals. Interns currently in training will be supported to continue their training at other Paik hospitals or different hospitals, and ongoing projects such as clinical research will also be transferred to other Paik hospitals. To maintain employment for hospital staff, it is expected that personnel transfers to other Paik hospitals will be arranged.

The hospital explained, "The closure of Seoul Paik Hospital is an unavoidable choice for the survival and development of the entire medical institution and is not intended to generate profit through land sales." It added, "Once the closure procedures are completed, a separate discussion will be held to decide the next steps," and "Regardless of how it is operated, all resources generated will be reinvested in the affiliated Paik hospitals to provide patients with optimal treatment and better medical care."

The labor union, professors, and alumni have all strongly opposed the closure plan. Alumni issued a statement on the same day saying, "All alumni of Seoul Paik Hospital cannot hide their shock and disappointment at the Inje Foundation board’s unilateral decision to close Seoul Paik Hospital," and urged, "The Inje Foundation board should cancel the closure resolution and reflect on the founding purpose of Seoul Paik Hospital, preparing measures to dedicate itself to citizens and contribute to medical development." The labor union is also reportedly discussing the level of protest, stating that the decision to end medical services was made without any agreement.

Meanwhile, Seoul Paik Hospital, established in 1941 as 'Paik Inje Surgical Hospital,' has functioned as the only university hospital in Jung-gu, Seoul, until now.

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