“Continued Change to Medical Channel for Foundation Operation”… Controversy over ‘Remote Control Abuse’ at a Hospital in Busan

Busan General Hospital TV Remote Control Controversy

A controversy regarding 'remote control abuse' has arisen at a general hospital in Busan, where patients' TV viewing has been restricted.

According to JTBC's "Incident Report" on the 8th, a patient’s guardian, Mr. A, reported that "for the past five months, we have been subjected to mistreatment by the hospital regarding the TV in the patient’s room."

According to the report, only the medical broadcast operated by the hospital foundation was being aired on the TVs installed on the walls of all patient rooms.

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Patients found that even if they changed the channel, it would automatically revert to the medical channel after about 30 minutes. This situation was not limited to patient rooms; TVs in the common areas exhibited the same issues, leading some patients to unplug the TV entirely out of frustration.

Mr. A explained, "Even if I switched to another channel, after 30 minutes, it would automatically return to the medical channel operated by the hospital foundation."

What is even more absurd is that on the 30th of last month, the hospital took the remote controls from the patient rooms, citing they needed to be "repaired."

Remote Control Collection and Violation of Patient Rights

When the remote controls did not return after several days, Mr. A inquired with the hospital, but the hospital staff replied, "Many patients want to watch the medical channel but are unable to, which has led to complaints," and added, "We cannot give out the remotes as it disrupts patients' sleep."

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In response, Mr. A expressed his frustration, stating, "They didn’t notify us in advance, and it was absurd to receive this explanation only after I inquired about the situation."

Ultimately, Mr. A reported the hospital's abusive behavior to the National Complaint Center, and only after a week of having the remotes collected, on the 6th, he was able to get them back.

However, when the hospital returned the remotes, they warned, "You must watch the medical channel from 8 AM to 9 AM for one hour. If you do not watch this channel, we will take the remote back."

Regarding the hospital's stance, Mr. A strongly expressed his concerns, saying, "While it may not be illegal, isn't this fundamentally an infringement on the rights of patients? What else could it be if not hospital abuse?"

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A hospital representative commented that "there seems to have been a misunderstanding," explaining, "Many patients requested to watch the medical channel, which is why we fixed it on that channel."

Regarding the collection of the remotes, they stated it was done for "maintenance reasons," adding, "Since each patient has different channels they want to watch, there have been fights among patients, and we needed to intervene because some severely ill patients needed rest while others were secretly watching TV at night."

This incident highlights the conflict between patients' basic rights to enjoy essential facilities in the hospital and the hospital's management policies, sparking discussions about the service provision methods of medical institutions.

Image source: jtbc 'Incident Report', reference photo to aid understanding of the article / gettyimagesbank