Gangil Hospital Medical Records Available at Gimhae Public Health Center After "Suspension of Operations"

Issuance of copies of medical records from Gangil Hospital in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, which suspended operations last month, began on October 8.

The city said it had taken over the medical records of Gangil Hospital, a local general hospital and emergency medical institution, and would issue copies of them.

Starting October 8, copies of medical records can be obtained in the lobby on the first floor of the Gimhae City Public Health Center in Naeoe-dong.

Copies are available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Gangil Hospital in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province. [Photo courtesy of Gangil Hospital's website]

Forms for requesting medical records can be downloaded from the "Open Plaza" section of the Gimhae City Public Health Center website.

Patients applying for copies of their records must present their own identification.

If a patient's spouse or immediate family member applies on the patient's behalf, they must bring their own identification, a family relationship certificate, and a consent form signed by the patient. If the patient appoints someone who is not a family member as their representative, that person must bring their own identification, a consent form signed by the patient, a power of attorney, and a copy of the patient's identification.

Gangil Hospital opened in 2017 as a general hospital with 290 beds.

It had operated 17 medical departments, including internal medicine, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, otolaryngology, urology, nephrology, pediatrics, dentistry, rehabilitation medicine, radiology, and cardiology, as well as 16 centers and clinics, including an endoscopy center, an artificial kidney center, and a physical rehabilitation center, along with an emergency room.

The hospital had long served as a pillar of local healthcare, but struggled with unpaid wages due to financial difficulties, overdue electricity bills, and the departure of medical staff. It suspended emergency room operations on September 1 and closed on September 16.

The 38 remaining inpatients were discharged before the closure or transferred to other hospitals.

Three years after the 452-bed Gimhae Jungang Hospital closed in 2023, another medical institution has suspended operations, heightening concerns about a gap in local emergency medical services.

The hospital said it planned to find a buyer and restore normal operations, but it remains unclear when its promise to "return with better medical services once normal operations resume" will be fulfilled.

A city public health center official said, "We will do our utmost to minimize inconvenience to residents caused by the suspension of medical services, ease their concerns through a swift response, and create a safe healthcare environment."

While issuing medical records will help patients continue their care, developing measures to reduce the gap in emergency medical services caused by the hospital's suspension of operations remains a challenge.

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