[코리아헤럴드=정민경 기자] 세계보건기구(WHO)는 8개월째 이어지는 한국의 의정갈등에 대해 "1차 의료 환경에서 서비스 공급 확장 필요"가 있다고 말했다.

이달 중순 WHO 관계자는 한국의 의정갈등에 대한 유엔 전문 기구의 입장을 물어보는 코리아헤럴드의 질의에 "WHO는 환자들이 지역사회에 기반한 시설에서 가깝게 진료를 받을 수 있게 해주는 1차 의료 체계를 지지"하며 1차 의료 환경에서 서비스 공급 확정 및 인력 충원은 "인류가 미래에 직면할 문제"들을 돌파할 때 반드시 필요할 것이라고 했다. 미래에 직면할 문제들로 고령화 사회 속 노화 그리고 암, 당뇨병, 알츠하이머 등을 포함한 비전염성 질환(Non-Communicable Diseases)들을 관계자는 예시로 들었다.

관계자는 또한 WHO는 '의대증원'을 놓고 팽팽히 맞서고 있는 정부와 의료계가 "보건 인력 없이 (한 국가의) 보건 체계는 존재할 수 없다"며 하루 빨리 해결 방안을 찾길 바란다고 암시했다.

정부는 현재 의료개혁의 목적인 지역·필수의료를 살리기 위해 의대증원은 불가피하다는 입장을 고수하고 있고, 의료계는 일차의료.필수의료 강화는 중요하되 의대증원이 해법이 될 수 없다고 반박하고 있다.

정민경 기자 (mkjung@heraldcorp.com)

〈전문〉

The World Health Organization, when asked about the prolonged medical standoff in South Korea, said Tuesday that expanding the primary health care workforce is needed to cope with future challenges.

"Challenges of the future -- including ageing, prevalence of noncommunicable diseases and new patterns of accessing health services -- require expanding the supply of services, particularly at primary health care settings, where most health needs should be addressed," said the UN agency's Regional Office for the Western Pacific in an email response to The Korea Herald.

"WHO advocates for primary health care-based systems that deliver health services where people are or as close to them as possible -- a system that actively engages with communities and works to keep populations healthy rather than waiting for them to fall sick to be treated later," it added.

The UN agency is working with governments to advocate "transformative primary health care," it said, explaining that such a system should have not only well-equipped health facilities but also "fit-for-purpose personnel, including doctors, nurses and other skilled health workers."

The WHO response came amid intensifying confrontations between the Yoon Suk Yeol administration and the doctors' groups here. Both sides have been calling for the need to bolster the primary health care provided on a day-to-day basis, such as by physicians at local clinics. However, they have struggled to agree on the details of the government-led reform plan.

Since February, thousands of junior doctors have walked off their jobs in protest of the government's plan to hike the medical school admissions quota to around 5,000 students per year, from around 3,000, starting next year. This has led to disruptions in the country's medical system, including surgery cancellations and delays in treatment, according to reports.

The UN agency dedicated to improving global health also expressed concerns that a depleted workforce could inconvenience patients. It indirectly urged both the government and the doctors' groups here to act together to resolve the ongoing strike and carry out a policy shift towards building a sustainable medical workforce.

"A lack of adequate health professionals can disrupt health services, especially for vulnerable populations," it said.

"In the Western Pacific Region, WHO is working with governments to advocate what we call transformative PHC (primary health care). That requires a policy shift towards a PHC-based health workforce that can reach the unreached and leave no one behind."