"We Offer 33 Million Won a Month" ... Where Is the Bold Recruitment Limited to Doctors Over 60?

Shinan County Sees 28.6% Drop in Public Health Doctors Within One Year
Open Recruitment for Senior Doctors Aged 60 and Over to Fill Medical Workforce Gap

Shinan County in South Jeolla Province has launched a public recruitment campaign to secure a 'senior physician,' offering a remarkable pre-tax monthly salary of 33 million won in an effort to address the medical service gap caused by a steep decline in public health doctors. As the resources of public health doctors—which have long served as the backbone of medical care in rural and island communities—are dwindling, local governments are now offering sizable compensation to directly attract experienced doctors.

28.6% Decrease in Public Health Doctors... Eight Locations Without Physicians

On August 13, Shinan County announced that it will accept applications for one 'senior physician' aged 60 or above until August 18. The employment period is for one year.

This recruitment drive is prompted by a sharp decline in public health doctors. The number of medical public health doctors serving in Shinan dropped from 21 last year to 15 this year. With six fewer doctors in just one year, this represents a decrease rate of 28.6%.

The impact of this shortage is being clearly felt on the front lines at local health subcenters. Of the 16 health subcenters within Shinan County, eight—half of the total—currently have no doctor assigned.

To address these staffing shortages, a single public health doctor affiliated with a neighboring health institution is covering up to four subcenters, but is only able to visit each site once or twice a week.

Shinan County Office. Shinan County

Shinan County authorities point out that, given the high proportion of elderly residents and chronic disease patients in the island regions, itinerant care alone cannot adequately meet local residents' ongoing medical needs.

33 Million Won per Month, Five Days a Week... Annual Pre-Tax Salary of Around 400 Million Won

The compensation offered by Shinan County is extremely generous: 33 million won per month pre-tax for five working days a week, or 26.4 million won per month pre-tax for four working days. When converted simply to an annual figure at five days a week, the pre-tax salary amounts to 396 million won. The four-day schedule corresponds to an annual pre-tax salary of about 316.8 million won. However, actual take-home pay may vary based on taxes and specific employment terms.

Given the high salary, eligibility requirements are also more stringent than for typical medical recruitment. Only those who have held a general practitioner’s license for at least 20 years of clinical experience, or who have worked for more than 10 years at a general hospital or higher after receiving a specialist qualification, are permitted to apply.

Shinan County explained that it established these salary standards after comprehensively considering the region’s unique needs such as rotating duty including island locales, high clinical experience requirements, and the difficulty of securing medical personnel due to the decrease of public health doctors.

In fact, between last year and early this year, Shinan County offered a pre-tax monthly salary of 11 to 13 million won over three separate recruitment attempts, but was unable to secure medical staff. Consequently, the county has now significantly raised the salary in hopes of attracting experienced physicians.

From General Practice to Remote Collaboration... Filling the Gaps in Island Healthcare

The physician who is ultimately hired will not be stationed at just one health subcenter, but will instead circulate between the main health center and various health subcenters to provide care. Duties will include general outpatient services, pre-vaccination screenings, issuance of various medical certificates, and other essential healthcare responsibilities at local institutions.

The hire will also participate in a pilot project for non-face-to-face and remote collaborative care, focusing on health centers that lack public health doctors. The plan is to deploy a combination of in-person visits and remote cooperation to utilize the limited workforce as efficiently as possible.

Shinan County has already developed its own medical contingency systems in some island regions. On five islands—Heuksando, Hauido, Sinuido, Jangsando, and Gageodo—the county has stationed two doctors on each, securing a 24-hour response system for night and weekend emergencies. This approach reflects the reality that, due to the geographic features of the islands, access to medical institutions in Shinan County is especially challenging.

Taeseong Kim, Governor of Shinan County, stated, "We established these compensation standards after comprehensively considering the difficulty of securing medical staff," and added, "We hope to recruit a much-needed physician to help strengthen healthcare services that truly benefit our residents." He continued, "We will continue to improve medical infrastructure in underserved areas so that island residents can access the same level of care as those in the cities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.