Trainee doctors stand outside a hospital in Gwanju holding signs in protest of the South Korean government's medical workforce reform plan on August 7,2020.
Thousands of medical interns and residents across South Korea launched a strike on Friday in protest of the government's medical workforce reform plan.
The Korean Intern Resident Association said around 70 to 80 percent of its 16,000 members were taking part in in the one-day walkout.
Trainee doctors who work in essential fields linked to patients' lives, including intensive care units, surgery and emergency rooms, also joined the strike.
They are opposed to the health ministry's plan to open a new public medical school and expand medical school admission quotas by 4,000 over the next 10 years, starting in 2022.
Amid concerns of potential inconveniences for patients, major general hospitals in Seoul mobilized alternative health care workers, such as clinical doctors and medical professors, in advance to reduce possible disruptions to essential services.
The Korea Medical Association, which speaks for 130,000 doctors, also plans to stage a separate general strike next Friday.
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