Seoul, Nov 10 (IANS) The largest South Korean doctors’ advocacy group voted on Sunday to impeach its chief, holding him responsible for poor responses to a prolonged walkout by junior doctors and various other controversies.
During an emergency assembly of representatives, the Korean Medical Association (KMA) decided to impeach Lim Hyun-taek after holding a vote of confidence and approved the formation of an emergency committee, reports Yonhap news agency.
Lim took office in March, a month after thousands of trainee doctors began leaving their workplaces in protest of the government’s decision to raise the medical school quota by around 2,000 annually for the next five years or so to address a shortage of doctors.
But the hard-liner chief has faced criticism for failing to play a role in resolving the walkout and making improper comments on the current health care service disruptions.
The impeachment is expected to help make progress in talks between the government and the medical community in hopes of a breakthrough, according to some officials. The KMA said it plans to hold a by-election to elect a new chief in 60 days.
Last month, the education ministry said it will temporarily allow medical students to take a leave of absence on condition that they return to school next year.
The decision follows Seoul National University’s move late last month to approve leave of absence requests submitted en masse in protest of the government’s medical reform plans, which include increasing medical school quotas.
While reaffirming its stance that taking leave to show solidarity is not a valid reason, the ministry said its temporary measure is aimed, in part, at normalising education.
It, however, warned that students who fail to return next year will face penalties, including possible expulsion.
The major lobby group of community doctors had renewed its demand for the government to revisit the 2025 medical school admissions quota, clouding prospects for a breakthrough to resolve months-long walkouts by junior doctors.
–IANS
na/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.