Articles by Park Jun-hee
Park Jun-hee
junheee@heraldcorp.com-
[Feature] Constant competition drives Koreans to despair
Kim, a 25-year-old corporate worker, often wonders if others are living better lives than her. She thinks about who might be making more money, getting better recognition at work or more opportunities. When Kim feels she’s falling behind her colleagues, those her age job-wise or in her love life, she feels blue and uneasy. “I’m grateful for what I have -- working at a large conglomerate, being raised in a good family and graduating from a prestigious school. But everything alwa
Social Affairs Sept. 9, 2024
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Rival parties unite to form 4-way body to break med school standoff
South Korea's rival political parties on Friday united in a rare display of bipartisan cooperation to form a four-party consultative body with the Yoon Suk Yeol administration and the medical community, aiming to jump-start negotiations over the medical school enrollment hike, which have been at the root of health care disruptions since February. People Power Party Chair Han Dong-hoon proposed the formation of a four-way consultative body, bringing together the Yoon government, ruling and o
Politics Sept. 6, 2024
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34 students grab prizes at 53rd Korea Herald English Speech Contest
The award ceremony for the 53rd Korea Herald English Speech Contest was held on Thursday at the Australian Embassy in Seoul on Friday. This year's contest, themed "My dream, Earth and the 10th Anniversary of the Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement," focused on the environment and economy. A total of 34 winners were recognized for their outstanding speeches. In attendance were Australian Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Jeff Robinson, Deputy Head of Mission Martin Walker, Heral
Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2024
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More ERs cut nighttime operations during Chuseok
More emergency departments are suspending nighttime operations or providing services during the upcoming Chuseok holiday due to severe workforce shortages, despite efforts to recruit additional staff and the deployment of military physicians to mitigate disruptions. Ajou University Hospital in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, notified patients that it would only admit patients needing around-the-clock cardiopulmonary resuscitation or those in severe conditions from 7 a.m. every Thursday to 7 a.m. the
Social Affairs Sept. 4, 2024
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What's really going on in ERs?
Last month, 33-year-old office worker Kim A-young experienced a nightmare when a first responder refused to take her to the emergency room despite her severe stomach pain. "I was informed that ERs at university hospitals wouldn't accept patients with stomach pain, which was later diagnosed as acute appendicitis," she said. "I was taken to a nearby community hospital but couldn't have the surgery immediately. Although the doctor indicated that my case was severe, I had to
Social Affairs Sept. 3, 2024
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S. Korea to hike fees for surgeries, reduce reliance on junior doctors
South Korea will raise medical service fees for essential procedures and surgeries and reduce large hospitals' dependence on junior doctors as part of a medical reform package introduced amid a prolonged medical confrontation between the government and doctors over the quota expansion of medical schools. Noh Yun-hong, who chairs the presidential special committee on medical reform, said Friday that the government would push forward in creating "physician-centered hospitals" nationwide
Social Affairs Aug. 30, 2024
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Seoul City to celebrate 3rd anniversary of 'Seoul Learn'
The Seoul Metropolitan Government will hold an event on Saturday to celebrate the third anniversary of its free online lecture platform for students here and unveil the program's new identity, officials said Friday. Dubbed "Seoul Learn," the program, launched in August 2021, offers free online lectures to underprivileged students to bridge the achievement gap among students from different socioeconomic backgrounds. It has also provided high-quality education without students hav
Social Affairs Aug. 30, 2024
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Unionized hospital workers pull out from strike
Unionized hospital workers pulled out from their planned strike Thursday after reaching an agreement on pay raises and better working conditions with hospitals, withdrawing from a decision that could have caused potential chaos at understaffed hospitals already suffering from junior doctors' collective walkouts in February. The Korean Health and Medical Workers' Union -- which has some 30,000 nurses, caregivers and other medical workers as members -- said Thursday that health care work
Social Affairs Aug. 29, 2024
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Understaffed, overwhelmed: S. Korean ERs in emergency mode
Seven months into South Korea's medical sector standoff, fatigue and backlogs of patients are hammering emergency departments nationwide as emergency medicine physicians are reeling from the mass walkout of medical interns and residents in February, with some deciding to leave their jobs for good. Seven out of 14 ER doctors at Ajou University Hospital in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, have tendered their resignations, putting the emergency unit under immense pressure as it grapples with personne
Social Affairs Aug. 28, 2024
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Crisis in medical system builds as hospital workers plan walkout
Amid a prolonged medical standoff, concerns are again looming large as more than 22,000 unionized hospital workers plan to strike beginning Thursday if the ongoing arbitration by the labor relations committee fails to reach an agreement on a pay raise and the normalization of hospital operations. The planned walkout comes after 91 percent of the Korean Health and Medical Workers' Union -- which has some 30,000 nurses, caregivers and other medical workers at 61 hospitals as members -- vote
Social Affairs Aug. 27, 2024
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Korean hospital ordered to pay W423m for US national's death
A Seoul court has ordered a local hospital to pay 423 million won ($319,993) to the family of a US national who died from a pulmonary embolism shortly after a hip replacement surgery in 2019, legal sources said Monday. The Seoul Central District Court recently delivered the ruling nearly five years after the bereaved family filed a damages suit against the hospital for negligence that resulted in death. The incident happened in August 2019 when the man, who was a 59-year-old American civilian em
Social Affairs Aug. 26, 2024
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What went wrong in response to Bucheon hotel fire?
Funerals for the victims of Thursday‘s Bucheon hotel fire were held on Sunday, but the controversy surrounding the tragedy has intensified while authorities have been searching to identify the circumstances that led to seven deaths and a dozen other injuries. Amid the ongoing efforts to determine the exact cause of the fire, a debate about the inflatable rescue mattress used by firefighters erupted, as two of the seven people died attempting to jump onto it. Soon after the blaze broke out,
Social Affairs Aug. 25, 2024
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Celebrities on photo line: walk of shame or equal treatment?
Suga of BTS not showing up for his first round of police questioning Thursday reignited debates over whether high-profile figures are unfairly targeted by being made to face the media on the photo line when they are under investigation. The star of the mega-hit K-pop group faces accusations of driving an electric scooter under the influence earlier this month. Reports initially indicated that he would appear for questioning at Yongsan Police Station for the first time on Thursday, drawing dozens
Social Affairs Aug. 22, 2024
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Medical standoff puts Korea's COVID-19 response to test
South Korea's health system, which for years worked to shield the nation from the deadly threat of COVID-19, finds itself under renewed pressure from a virus resurgence amid the prolonged standoff between medical professionals and the government, putting its capacity to the test. The virus is likely to peak later this month at a time when the country's health care has for six months been stretched beyond its capacity, after intern and resident doctors resigned en masse in mid-February
Social Affairs Aug. 21, 2024
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Seoul designates mpox as infectious disease subject to border screening
Starting Wednesday, South Korean health authorities will classify mpox as an infectious disease subject to border screening and require passengers flying from eight African nations with mpox symptoms to report to officials, health authorities here said Tuesday afternoon. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said the decision comes after the World Health Organization declared mpox a "public health emergency of international concern" last week. Under the strengthened surveilla
Social Affairs Aug. 20, 2024
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