Relevant associations oppose Korean Hospital Association's decision to remove obstetrics, gynecology and pediatrics from general hospitals

Hospital related groups are protesting after it became known that the Korean Hospital Association had conveyed its position to the government that it should exclude obstetrics and gynecology departments and pediatrics and adolescent departments from the mandatory opening and standards for general hospitals.

The Korean Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Korean Association of Pediatrics and Adolescents held an emergency press conference at the Lotte Hotel Seoul in Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul on October 2nd. They criticized it as a case that clearly showed once again that it is not an organization, but just an association of business owners.

The Korean Hospital Association recently submitted to the Ministry of Health and Welfare a "Proposal Related to Establishing Comprehensive Measures for Essential Medical Care", and the establishment of a general hospital with 100 or more beds and 300 or less beds is required. They proposed that the department should be deleted and that the structure should be changed so that medical personnel can be smoothly assigned to actual essential medical sites. According to the current medical law, a hospital can be licensed as a general hospital if it opens three out of four departments (internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics and adolescents, and obstetrics and gynecology) and assigns specialists.

The Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Association of Pediatrics and Adolescents said, "The Korean Hospital Association's emphasis on essential medical care is also based on the desire to earn more money overall, not from the perspective of public health. It's just a claim that comes out of it, and it's a figure that reveals that it's not something to worry about the future", while pointing out that the claim of the Korean Hospital Association is nothing more than a twist.