[Editorial] Seek breakthrough

The South Korean government now holds the position that it can discuss the option of adjusting the medical school admissions quota for 2026, a desperate move aimed at getting interns and residents back to hospitals, many of which are struggling with severe staff shortages.

The deepening medical service crisis was sparked in February by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s plan to increase the medical school admission quota as part of its overall medical reform plan. The quota increase resulted in the collective walkout by junior doctors, who normally support emergency and other medical care at major hospitals across the nation.

The monthslong absence of interns and residents is undercutting the overall quality and availability of medical services. Some patients were refused admittance by emergency rooms, even though their serious conditions required urgent care.

The Health Ministry said that 88 out of 180 major hospital emergency rooms were providing medical services as of Thursday, down from 109 in the first week of February.

In the face of worsening conditions at emergency rooms and negative public opinion, the government on Saturday called on the medical community to come up with its own plan regarding the quota for 2026.

On Friday, the ruling People Power Party proposed the formation of a four-way consultative body where the Yoon administration, ruling and opposition parties and the medical community can hunker down to seek a solution to the ongoing medical crisis over the enrollment quota increase.

The government welcomed the idea about the joint consultative body and the presidential office said that it can start what is calls “zero-based” discussion regarding the enrollment quota for 2026 if the medical community offers a “reasonable option.”

But the government’s latest stance seems more flexible than before, given that it is at least willing to talk about the enrollment options without preconditions or fixed plans in negotiations with the medical community. This means that the government may not stick to its plan to increase the quota by 2,000 medical students, depending on the negotiations with the medical community.

However, the government’s softened position is insufficient according to what junior doctors have demanded so far. What they have consistently called for is scrapping the quota hike plan, starting with the increase for 2025.

The key demand from the doctors is that the government must cancel the entire quota increase plan. But the government finalized the quota increase details for next year in June and the process for university entrance exams is under way. The initial application process for those who apply for early admissions is scheduled to start Monday. For the government, schools and students, it might be too late to cancel or adjust the quota increase for the 2025 academic year.

The government’s attempt to ram through its increase of the medical school quota by 2,000 is said to have gone too far -- and too fast -- without enough consultation with doctors. But the juniors doctors have also faced criticism for refusing to accept even a slight increase in the quota.

More worrisome is that the remaining doctors and medical professors working hard to take care of patients at the hospitals also face deep fatigue and overwork. This dire situation has to be resolved because the prolonged disruption is pushing all stakeholders -- doctors, medical students, patients and policymakers -- into an unprecedented medical crisis.

Given that the government is now open to negotiations, the medical community should respond with its own suggestions, including an optimal quota increase that minimizes side effects. This type of confrontation at the cost of patients must stop.