[비즈한국] Following President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of emergency martial law on the night of the 3rd, the medical community was thrown into turmoil after the Martial Law Command’s decree included a provision requiring "medical personnel, including residents, to return to work within 48 hours."
In its decree, the Martial Law Command stated, "All medical personnel who are currently on strike or have left their medical posts, including residents, must return to their primary jobs and work faithfully within 48 hours; violators will be punished according to the Martial Law Act."
Currently, more than half of the residents who resigned are employed and working as general practitioners. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as of the 18th of last month, 50.4% (4,640 people) of the 9,198 residents whose resignations were finalized have found employment at medical institutions as general practitioners.
The resigned residents are expressing confusion regarding the scope of the return-to-work order. A resigned resident, 'A', said, "I have not received any individual notification yet," adding, "In our group chat, the general atmosphere is to wait and see the situation for now."
'B', a resigned resident and policy advisor to the Korean Medical Association (KMA), stated, "The KMA has not been contacted by any resigned residents," and added, "We are also in a state of confusion and are currently trying to figure out what is happening."
On this day, KMA spokesperson Choi Ahn-na told reporters, "We are currently trying to grasp the exact facts regarding the emergency martial law. Regarding the work order for medical personnel on strike, including residents, mentioned in the Martial Law Command's Decree No. 1, we are clarifying to the Martial Law Command that there are currently no personnel who are resigned residents on strike."
She further added, "Regarding the current situation, the association will do its utmost to ensure the safety of our members and prevent any harm. We also announce that the medical field will continue normal operations despite the martial law situation to resolve public confusion and anxiety," noting, "There are no residents currently on strike, and those former residents whose resignations were processed are holding their respective positions; we convey that care must be taken to ensure they suffer absolutely no harm."
The Emergency Committee of Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Hospital also commented on the decree, stating, "As resigned medical personnel have had their contracts with their former workplaces terminated, they do not fall under the category of 'being on strike or having left their posts,' and are therefore unrelated to that clause," and added, "Despite the confusion caused by the declaration of martial law that threatens democracy, our medical personnel will continue to protect the health of patients and defend the rights of medical professionals, including residents."
The confusion was subsequently put to an end when the National Assembly passed a resolution demanding the lifting of the emergency martial law at approximately 1 a.m. on the 4th.