Medical workers enter the Seoul National University Hospital in central Seoul on March 11, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Apr. 18 (Korea Bizwire) – Many professors at the College of Medicine at Seoul National University have been working exhausting 80-hour weeks or more to fill in for residents who have been on strike for two months, a recent survey by the emergency committee at the medical school and hospital has revealed.
On April 16, the emergency committee convened its fourth emergency meeting and released the results of a survey on working hours and fatigue levels that was conducted among 522 professors at the medical school and hospital.
According to the survey findings, 40.6% of professors reported working 80 hours or more per week, with 16% working over 100 hours weekly. Only 8.3% said they worked 52 hours or less per week.
Just 75 respondents said they were guaranteed rest time the day after a 24-hour shift, while 364 professors indicated they were not, suggesting most clinical faculty had to work regular daytime hours even after overnight duties.
The survey also measured stress levels, with 52.3% of professors reporting high stress, and 89.2% of those showing potential symptoms of depression, according to the committee.
“At today’s meeting, we shared updates on the committee’s activities and the current situation,” the emergency committee said. “We will discuss our future plans and collect opinions from all medical school and hospital faculty.”
Meanwhile, the emergency committee at the medical school of Ulsan University also held a meeting on the same day. “Residents from Asan Medical Center participated, and we decided to maintain our stance as the president’s comments at the cabinet meeting today showed no significant change from before the elections,” the Ulsan committee stated.
Previously, they had called on the government to scrap its plan to increase medical school admissions by 2,000 students and instead engage in sincere dialogue.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
