58 out of 431 emergency medical institutions nationwide… ‘There are many restrictions such as age and symptoms’
Quick Look
Among the 431 emergency medical institutions across the country, only 58 (13.5%) provide 24-hour emergency pediatric care, 170 of them are unable to provide treatment, and the remaining institutions provide limited services based on time, age, symptoms, etc., said Jeon Jeon-sook.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
In order to determine the status of pediatric emergency patient care at emergency medical institutions across the country, Rep. Jeon Jin-sook of the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee received and analyzed relevant data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
58 out of 431 emergency medical institutions nationwide… “There are many restrictions such as age and symptoms.”
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Go Yoo-seon = Among emergency medical institutions nationwide, it was found that only one in seven can treat pediatric emergency patients 24 hours a day, regardless of time zone, age, or symptoms.
According to the 'Status of pediatric emergency patient care at emergency medical institutions' received from the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 6th by Rep. Jeon Jin-sook (Democratic Party of Korea) of the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee, among 431 emergency medical institutions nationwide, only 58 (13.5%) were able to provide pediatric emergency care 24 hours a day without any restrictions.
There were 170 (39.4%) institutions that were unable to provide 24-hour pediatric emergency care, and the remaining 203 (47.1%) facilities were limited by time, age, symptoms, etc.
In particular, looking at the information submitted by individual medical institutions to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, there were institutions that responded that treatment was available 24 hours a day, but that treatment was not possible on weekdays or at specific times, or that it was difficult to provide treatment to infants under a certain age or patients with specific symptoms.
By type of emergency medical institution, the institutions that responded that 24-hour pediatric emergency care was not possible were 3 out of 44 regional emergency medical centers (6.8%), 47 out of 141 regional emergency medical centers (33.3%), and 119 out of 232 local emergency medical institutions, or 119 (51.3%).
It was also found that there was a shortage of professional personnel in charge of pediatric emergency care.
Among a total of 431 emergency medical institutions, only 99 (23.0%) had pediatric specialists working as emergency room doctors.
Rep. Jeon Jin-sook said, "It is difficult for guardians to judge whether an emergency room can actually treat children just by the phrase '24-hour treatment available'" and emphasized, "The government should not simply manage the number of institutions with 24-hour treatment, but accurately determine whether pediatric patients can be accommodated by time zone, age, and symptom and allow the public to confirm this."
Open Questions
- What are the specific reasons for institutions unable to provide pediatric emergency care?
- Is there a specific plan from the government to address the shortage of pediatric specialists?
- What are the specific standards for institutions that apply restrictions by time zone, age, and symptoms?
