A doctor walks through a hallway at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital on Aug. 21, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 27 (Korea Bizwire) — A shortage of pediatric surgeons to treat congenital anomalies among children is rising as a pressing social issue.
The medical industry and the Korean Surgical Society (KSS) reported that there were zero applicants for pediatric surgery this year, raising concerns over the potential risk to children.
“There are around 140 to 160 new surgeons every year, and not even half of them want to specialize in sub-medical fields,” said Dr. Lee Woo-yong, chairman of the KSS and professor at Samsung Medical Center.
With an increasing shortage of surgeons, the lack of medical specialists in charge of conducting difficult surgeries poses a risk to patients, since they might not be able to receive adequate treatment in due time.
In some regions, there are hospitals without a single pediatric surgeon on staff.
The KSS says it cannot force doctors to tread the difficult path of a surgeon based on a sense of duty, claiming that special measures need to take place.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
