Burned-out South Korean Trainee Doctors Walked Off Their Jobs Over A Plan To Boost Med School Enrolment

Doctors hold placards that read 'Opposition to the increase in medical schools' as they gather to protest against the government's plan to raise the annual enrolment quota at medical schools by 2000 in Seoul on February 15, 2024.Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty ImagesSouth Korean trainee doctors are striking over a plan to increase med school student quotas.They say the country's doctor shortage is due to low wages and poor working conditions in some specialties and areas.The walkout is stoking fears of huge disruptions to the country's strained healthcare system.Over 1,600 trainee doctors in South Korea walked off their jobs on Tuesday over a government plan to increase med school enrolment quotas, according to media reports.Separately, over 6,400 trainee doctors — including those on strike — across 100 hospitals have tendered their resignation as of Monday, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.