Regional National University Hospitals in Seoul Reach 'Big 5' Level... Preventing Patient Concentration in the Capital Area

Fostering Essential Medical Hubs Including National University Hospitals
Strengthening Compensation Through Introduction of Public Medical Fees
Innovative Research and Development in Essential Medical Fields

The government will strengthen the regional essential medical delivery system centered on national university hospitals. The aim is to ensure that severe emergency final treatments can be completed locally without having to visit large hospitals in the metropolitan area.

On the 19th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced an essential medical innovation strategy based on this content. The ministry views overcoming the crisis of collapse in regional and essential medical care as an urgent task that can no longer be delayed, and revealed key tasks such as ▲normalizing the essential medical delivery system ▲securing sufficient medical personnel ▲strengthening the implementation foundation, all aimed at "uninterrupted medical coverage anytime, anywhere."

Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Raising the capabilities of national university hospitals to the level of large metropolitan hospitals

The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to elevate the capabilities of national university hospitals to the level of large metropolitan tertiary general hospitals. Currently, there are 17 national university hospitals (10 main hospitals and 7 branch hospitals) operating in 14 cities and provinces nationwide. There are 16 regional responsibility medical institutions, consisting of 14 national university hospitals and 2 hospitals (Incheon Gil Hospital and Ulsan University Hospital). The total number of beds is 15,688. The average number of beds per institution is 9228. As of 2021, all national university hospitals recorded a deficit of 344.3 billion KRW. Medical revenue was 6.6858 trillion KRW, and medical expenses were 7.0302 trillion KRW.

The ministry will first significantly expand the number of faculty positions in essential medical fields, which are core to medical capabilities. By innovating regulations on public institutions, it will reduce the wage gap with private university hospitals to secure excellent personnel, and increase the number of positions through consultations with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. National university hospitals are classified as "other public institutions" under the Public Institution Operation Act and are subject to regulations at the level of public enterprises and quasi-governmental institutions. The ministry plans to allow national university hospitals to operate personnel expenses and staffing management flexibly through regulatory innovation. Costs for securing intensive care unit and emergency room beds and personnel will be supported through the introduction of public policy fees, and compensation for essential medical centers will also be strengthened.

Priority support will be given to improving aging severe and emergency treatment facilities and beds, public specialized treatment centers, and other facilities and equipment, and government investment will be expanded.

Through innovative research and development (R&D) investment in essential medical fields, the research capabilities of national university hospitals will be enhanced to establish a "virtuous cycle structure of treatment and research." Essential medical innovation research will be supported long-term through Korea’s ARPA-H (Advanced Research Projects Agency-H).

A pilot project for a regional essential medical network that cooperates between national university hospitals and local hospitals and clinics to improve medical quality will also be conducted. National university hospitals and others will have the authority and responsibility as regional responsibility medical institutions to lead regional essential medical resource management, supply chain oversight, various essential medical support projects, and performance evaluations of institutions. Currently, 14 national university hospitals are installed nationwide. The regions without national university hospitals are Incheon and Ulsan, where Gachon Gil Hospital (Incheon) and Ulsan University Hospital (Ulsan) respectively fulfill the role. Excellent regional general hospitals will be fostered in each of the 70 intermediate medical service areas nationwide to cooperate with national university hospitals. Additionally, Seoul National University Hospital, National Medical Center, and Cancer Center will be connected as a national central medical network to strengthen the region’s capacity for final treatment of severe diseases.

The next pandemic response system will also be centered on regional national university hospitals. To this end, support will be provided so that national university hospitals can form and operate city/province infectious disease response committees. The government will change the jurisdiction of national university hospitals from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Health and Welfare to foster them as hubs of medical innovation.

Medical school quotas to increase starting from the 2025 admissions

The Ministry of Health and Welfare will expand medical school quotas to increase the number of doctors, which is at the lowest level among OECD countries, to address gaps in essential medical care and prepare for the transition to a super-aged society. The government’s plan is to gradually increase the medical school quotas, which have been capped at 3,058 since 2006. This will be reflected starting from the 2025 admissions. Additionally, a rational quota adjustment system will be established, including faculty recruitment and accreditation evaluation.

Through concentrated support such as raising essential medical fees and improving working conditions, the outflow of personnel to cosmetic dermatology will also be prevented. Workforce measures will be implemented to ensure that doctors can stably provide care in regional and essential medical fields from medical school admission through training and hospital staffing.

Exploring ways to reduce legal burdens on medical personnel

The ministry plans to establish a comprehensive regional and essential medical coordination system centered on the "Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee" and expand financial investment. To ensure that essential medical personnel can provide stable care, measures to reduce legal burdens on medical personnel and patient damage relief in the event of medical disputes will also be explored. The state will fully bear the compensation fund for unavoidable childbirth medical accidents and increase compensation amounts. The scope of special criminal punishment for medical personnel will be expanded, and support for subscribing to medical liability insurance in essential medical fields will be provided to reduce civil and criminal burdens on essential medical workers.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to quickly implement specific action plans through the Regional and Essential Medical Innovation Task Force (TF). Minister Cho Kyu-hong said, “We have prepared an innovation strategy to dramatically raise the capabilities of national university hospitals to the level of large metropolitan hospitals, so that severe disease treatment can be completed locally, and to normalize the inefficient medical delivery system of isolated self-help into a closely cooperative system to fill gaps in essential medical care. With the change in jurisdiction of national university hospitals, we will focus investment so that national university hospitals can become the core of essential medical care, hubs of health and medical R&D innovation, and sources of workforce training and supply.”

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