Minister Jung Eunkyung Listens to On-Site Opinions at National University Hospitals Ahead of Ministry Transfer

Fifth Meeting of the "Council for Strengthening Regional, Essential, and Public Healthcare" with Presidents of Nine National University Hospitals

Jung Eunkyung, Minister of Health and Welfare, and Choi Eunok, Vice Minister of Education, held an expanded session of the 5th meeting of the "Council for Strengthening Regional, Essential, and Public Healthcare" on November 14 at Kangwon National University Hospital in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. During this meeting, they discussed comprehensive strategies to foster clinical services, education, and research at national university hospitals. All nine regional national university hospital presidents were in attendance.

Jung Eunkyung, Minister of Health and Welfare, is speaking at the policy briefing session for the press corps held on September 22 at the Federation of Korean Industries building in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Ministry of Health and Welfare

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Education, and the national university hospitals have been gathering a wide range of opinions regarding the support needed to strengthen the roles and capabilities of national university hospitals amid the current crisis in regional, essential, and public healthcare, through various councils and policy briefings. Recently, a council for strengthening regional, essential, and public healthcare, composed of hospital presidents from national university hospitals across different regions, has been established and is in operation. This council is preparing a support roadmap and discussing detailed implementation plans regarding the transfer of oversight for national university hospitals to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Education are also making efforts to reflect the voices from the field in policy by visiting all nine regional national university hospitals and holding meetings with faculty members.

Based on the feedback collected, the government is preparing a blueprint for comprehensive support measures for clinical services, education, and research in relation to the transfer of oversight for national university hospitals to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. This includes plans to provide support for personnel and infrastructure to strengthen the roles and capabilities of national university hospitals, securing sufficient staff to prevent concerns about the weakening of educational and research functions, expanding support for specialized research and development (R&D) at national university hospitals, and strengthening support for their role as training hospitals. Financial and institutional support measures for education and research are also included.

At the meeting, participants listened to on-site opinions regarding the comprehensive support plan for national university hospitals and discussed future implementation strategies. The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Education plan to finalize the comprehensive support plan for national university hospitals through continuous feedback from the hospitals and consultations with relevant ministries.

Minister Jung Eunkyung stated, "I deeply appreciate the dedication of national university hospital staff who are safeguarding regional healthcare under challenging circumstances. Moving forward, the Ministry of Health and Welfare will ensure comprehensive support for national university hospitals to strengthen regional, essential, and public healthcare, while also devising detailed measures to further enhance their roles as centers of education and research."

Vice Minister Choi Eunok also remarked, "Even after the transfer of oversight for national university hospitals to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the connection between universities and hospitals will not be severed. The Ministry of Education will continue to work closely with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to ensure that national university hospitals maintain their identity as educational and research institutions affiliated with medical schools."

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