While medical circles have shown signs of momentum for collective action across the country, the Health Ministry on Thursday downplayed the possibility of them walking out of school campuses and jobs, saying it judges the likelihood of a full-scale joint action as “very low.” Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Park Min-soo said during Thursday’s press briefing that the ministry has seen no movements at this point, adding that reports that junior doctors have submitted t

Social Affairs Feb. 15, 2024

With doctors groups still mulling a strike, incumbent medical students are also mulling collective action in protest of the government’s announcement last week of an increase in the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 from the current 3,058. The Korea Association of Medical Colleges, a group of current medical students, held an all-night online meeting earlier in the day, attended by representatives of each university’s medical school, to discuss submitting for leave of absence,

Social Affairs Feb. 14, 2024

Tensions continued to build Tuesday between doctors and the government, with a group of over 10,000 junior doctors ending their first discussion about joining the nationwide strike without reaching a conclusion. Instead, they decided to forge an emergency committee in an apparent move to escalate their offensive against the government plan to increase the medical school enrollment quota. The Korea Intern Resident Association, consisting of thousands of junior doctors essential to the critical ca

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2024

Medical circles continue to lock horns with the government following the announcement of an increase in medical school enrollment quotas by 2,000 from the current 3,058, as they mull joint action in protest of the decision. In response, the Health Ministry said Thursday afternoon it had issued orders to prohibit doctors from engaging in collective action and specialists from resigning en masse. The ministry raised the national health crisis level to alert -- the third highest in the four-tier

Social Affairs Feb. 12, 2024

Medical circles continue to lock horns with the government following the announcement of an increase in medical school enrollment quotas by 2,000 from the current 3,058, as they mull joint action in protest of the decision. In response, the Health Ministry said Thursday afternoon it had issued orders to prohibit doctors from engaging in collective action and specialists from resigning en masse. The ministry raised the national health crisis level to alert -- the third highest in the four-tier

Social Affairs Feb. 8, 2024

The race for medical school enrollment has kicked off nationwide following the government’s decision on Tuesday to increase the quota by 2,000 from the current 3,058 to ease the staffing problem and improve access to healthcare services, according to experts on Wednesday. Woo Youn-cheol, a team leader at Jinhak Educational Assessment Research Institute, pointed out that there would be a particular increase in the number of retakers for the Suneung, or the country’s national college e

Social Affairs Feb. 7, 2024

The South Korean government on Tuesday announced it will increase the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 to address the shortage of doctors in non-metropolitan areas and broaden the reach of healthcare services despite the medical circle’s strong opposition and threat to hold a nationwide strike. According to the plan, approved by the medical policy review body held on Tuesday afternoon, the number of medical students will be increased to 5,058. The hike is the first in 27 years sinc

Social Affairs Feb. 6, 2024

Amid the shrinking school population, the two affluent neighborhoods in South Korea known for their excellent academics saw a spike in enrollment for first-year middle schoolers, reflecting parents’ zeal to provide better educational opportunities for their children, government data showed Monday. A total of 9,654 middle first-year students were assigned to schools in Gangnam and Seocho areas, both south of Seoul, a 1.36 percent increase, or up 130 students from last year’s figure of

Social Affairs Feb. 5, 2024

More than 5.47 million Seoulites have moved to a different metro area in the last 10 years, government data showed Monday, as home prices and uncertainties in the real estate market drive many to relocate to cities with more affordable housing. Of the total, some 1.74 million people said their main reason for leaving the city between 2014 and 2023 was housing, according to the Korean Statistical Information Service data on the number of people who relocated from Seoul to other cities and provinc

Social Affairs Feb. 5, 2024

진행자: 박준희, Ali Abbot Loved like idols, canceled like demons 기사 요약: 이미지 타격 큰 ‘연예인 리스크’에 사건사고 터지면 발 빠르게 광고 손절하는 업체들 [1] The news that actor Lee Sun-kyun was being investigated for allegations of illegal drug use broke out on Oct. 19. From then on, the actor disappeared from public view, except when he was made to appear in front of the media each of the three times he underwent a police interrogation. The fact that he tested negative for drugs multiple times throughout the monthslong

Podcast Feb. 5, 2024

South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare on Sunday rolled out a five-year plan to push for “fundamental shifts” in the national health insurance system to ensure sustainability in the face of a health care supply crisis and rapid population downsizing. The 2024-28 comprehensive plan aims at better compensating essential but undervalued medical services to tackle the shortage of medical professionals in certain sectors, as well as target the issues of overtreatment and overs

Social Affairs Feb. 4, 2024

Two firefighters who were trapped while responding to a fire at a four-story meat processing factory in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province, late Wednesday were found dead early Thursday, fire authorities said. The Gyeongbuk Fire Service Headquarters said that officials retrieved the bodies of the two firefighters at 1:01 a.m. and 4:14 a.m., respectively, adding that they were around five to seven meters from each other at the time of the discovery. The two firefighters -- reportedly a 27-year-

Social Affairs Feb. 1, 2024

진행자: 박준희, Ali Abbot Korean TV programs show former couples together amid cultural shift 기사 요약: 옛 연인·배우자 소환하는 요즘 예능...환승연애 3 흥행에 달라진 시대상 반영 [1] South Korean entertainment shows which invite past lovers on the program are gaining popularity. Following a shift in Korean culture towards more openly discussing past relationships, there is an increase in audience demand for shows to more directly fulfill innate desires, according to experts. * Invite: 초대하다, 초청하다 * Shift: 변화, 이동 * Demand: 요구

Podcast Feb. 1, 2024

Turkmenistan Ambassador to South Korea B. Durdyev and Choi Jin-young, the CEO of The Korea Herald, discussed ways of enhancing media cooperation through content during their meeting in Seoul on Tuesday. As part of the bilateral cooperation, the two sides discussed beefing up bilateral cooperation by publishing content about the domestic and foreign policies of Turkmenistan, as well as exchanging news and information on both countries’ current events and achievements. During the meeting, th

Foreign Affairs Jan. 31, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday vowed to improve services in digital government administration, online gaming and telemedicine by removing organizational hassle, enhancing protections for gamers and improving the welfare of the people. The plan involves digitizing necessary documents for approximately 1,500 administrative services within the next three years and creating digital stamps in lieu of traditional personal seals, which have been in use in South Korea for 110 years. In cases where p

Social Affairs Jan. 30, 2024