Samsung Medical Center's 80% Return of Residents… Expectation for Normalization of Medical Services

It has been confirmed that approximately 80% of the residents have returned to Samsung Medical Center, which was the first among the big five hospitals to close its recruitment for residents.

According to medical industry officials on the 19th, the return rate reached around 80% as a large number of applicants applied for the second half of the resident recruitment, which closed the day before.

Among the total capacity of 527, about 20% (over 100 residents) had already returned, and through this recruitment, most of the positions have been filled.

A professor at Samsung Medical Center stated, "In our department, apart from some individuals who left for overseas, most have returned. I expected only about half to come back, but it has exceeded expectations, significantly improving the atmosphere."

Increase in Return Rates at Major University Hospitals; Differences by Department and Region Persist

It has been reported that Asan Medical Center, which also closed its recruitment on the same day, recorded a return rate similar to that of Samsung Medical Center. Additionally, over half of the residents at Hanyang University Hospital and Kyungpook National University Hospital have returned.

This is interpreted as a sign that the training environment of university hospitals, which had been disrupted due to the mass resignation of residents, is gradually recovering, and it is expected that the normalization of medical services in the field will accelerate.

Catholic University Medical Center will recruit residents until the 19th, while Seoul National University Hospital and Severance Hospital will do so until the 21st.

In the case of Hanyang University Hospital, 35 out of 38 interns applied, effectively filling the positions. Kyungpook National University Hospital received applications from 138 out of a quota of 220, achieving a 63% filling rate. Originally scheduled to close on the 18th, Kyungpook National University Hospital extended the application deadline to the 20th.

This movement of return is significant as it marks the first substantial flow of residents returning since the mass resignation incident.

While there had been individual returns in some departments, this simultaneous return of residents across multiple hospitals is a first since the conflicts between the medical community and officials.

As a result, expectations are growing that the medical system, which had been shaken by the training gap, will gradually normalize.

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