Doctor shortage projections ignite fresh tensions with medical groups

A recent estimate showing Korea could face a severe doctor shortage by 2040 is reigniting tensions over medical school quotas, as medical groups move to discredit the projections. The Physician Workforce Projection Committee, an advisory body involving representatives of doctors, warned earlier this week that the country could face a shortage of up to 11,136 doctors by that year, even if artificial intelligence is deployed more widely in clinical practice. The projections put demand for physicians at between 144,688 and 149,273 by 2040, while the active workforce is expected to reach only 138,137 to 138,984, leaving a gap of 5,704 to 11,136 doctors. The new numbers are significantly lower than the “15,000 doctors short by 2035” projection presented during the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration, which used that number to justify expanding the nationwide medical school quota by 2,000 extra students. This plan of increasing the annual intake from 3,058 to 5,058 students was eventually reversed following a fierce backlash from trainee physicians, who demanded an objective basis forWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times