Public Health Physicians in Gyeonggi Region Expected to Decrease by 50

The number of public health physicians deployed to health centers and other facilities in Gyeonggi Province this year is expected to decline by approximately 50 compared to last year.

According to the province on the 19th, following the government's decision to halt public health physician deployment to self-governing bodies in sound fiscal condition, public health physicians will no longer be deployed to health centers in 14 city areas within the province starting this year.

As a result, of the 533 public health physicians in the province, 218 will have their contracts expire in early next month, but only 168 new public health physicians will be recruited, resulting in an estimated decrease of 50 compared to last year.

To prevent a shortage of public health physicians, the province has instructed municipal and county governments to hire contract-basis physicians and to prioritize the deployment of public health physicians to public health institutions such as health centers over private emergency medical facilities.

Earlier, the Ministry of Health and Welfare determined that public health physicians could not be deployed to 14 cities including Seoul, Busan, and Goyang, Gwacheon, Gwangmyeong, Guri, Gunpo, Bucheon, Seongnam, Suwon, Siheung, Anyang, Osan, Uiwang, Uijeongbu, and Hanam in Gyeonggi Province, due to a sharp decline in public health physician candidates as the proportion of female medical school enrollees increased and military-service-exempted applicants to newly established medical graduate schools rose.

A provincial official stated, "Since we cannot deploy public health physicians to health centers in 14 city areas within the province from 2009 onwards, we are actively encouraging the recruitment of physicians."