'Emergency Room Roundabout' 8-Year-Old Pediatric Diabetes Patient, Cheongju→Incheon... Treatment in 2.5 Hours

Amid prolonged conflicts in the medical council leading to repeated 'emergency room shuttling' incidents on the ground, an 8-year-old child diabetes patient in Cheongju, Chungbuk, was unable to find a hospital capable of treatment and was transferred to Incheon after about two hours.

A banner related to the pediatric emergency room is placed at the emergency medical center of a university hospital in Seoul city.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Chungbuk Fire Headquarters on the 28th, at around 10:24 p.m. the previous day, a report was received from Mr. A in Seowon-gu, Cheongju, saying, "My son's blood sugar level is high, please help."

The paramedics who arrived at the scene confirmed that Mr. A's son, B (8), a child diabetes patient, was experiencing hyperglycemia symptoms and urgently needed insulin administration, so they searched for a hospital that could provide treatment. However, all nine hospitals in Chungbuk as well as nearby Chungnam, Sejong, and Daejeon areas refused transfer due to the absence of pediatric specialists or lack of available beds.

After extensive inquiries, B was admitted to Inha University Hospital in Incheon, 10 km away from Cheongju, 2 hours and 30 minutes after the report was received, past midnight. B, who received treatment safely, is currently reported to have regained stability.

Earlier in Chungbuk, on the 19th, a 20-year-old pregnant woman whose amniotic fluid had broken was transferred to a hospital in Daejeon after 2 hours due to 'emergency room shuttling,' and a 70-year-old pneumonia patient showing respiratory distress was transferred to a hospital in Pyeongtaek after 2 hours and 30 minutes.

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