[Parliamentary Audit Spotlight] Han Jia Leads Response to Police Raid on Pediatric ER

Medical staff signal plans to resign, underscoring the seriousness
"Police had never raided a pediatric emergency room"
Health and Welfare Committee vows response through bipartisan talks

"We cannot let Ajou University Hospital's Pediatric Emergency Medical Center close, can we? As a member of the Health and Welfare Committee, if something that should never happen does happen, it is the committee's job to correct it through the parliamentary audit. If we cannot do that, what are we even here for?"

People Power Party lawmaker Han Jia, a member of the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee. Photo courtesy of Rep. Han's office.

Han Jia of the People Power Party, a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, said for the first time during a comprehensive parliamentary audit of the Ministry of Health and Welfare on October 27 that seven medical staff members at Ajou University Hospital's Pediatric Emergency Center, which was recently searched by police, had told the hospital that they intended to resign. "The committee must take all necessary measures through bipartisan agreement," she said. Addressing Health and Welfare Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong, she said, "If you cannot stop this, what are you here for?" and criticized the government, asking, "Didn't the Lee Jae-myung administration say it would save essential medical care?" She urged the National Assembly and the government to draw up countermeasures.

Han highlighted the seriousness of the matter by examining in detail the problems with the police search of the pediatric emergency center. She said the heads of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, which has jurisdiction over the area where the center is located, and the Korean National Police Agency were both vacant, arguing that "President Lee's irresponsibility in leaving important positions vacant has put essential medical care at risk." She also stressed that "the police have never searched a pediatric emergency room since the force was founded." She said the police had pressed ahead with an excessive investigation without consulting experts, adding that "it was effectively an investigation in which the conclusion had already been reached."

As a former doctor, Han pointed to the harmful effects that the police's coercive investigation could have on medical staff's ability to treat patients. "They questioned a doctor for 40 minutes after the doctor had spent an hour trying to save a patient," she said. "This obstructs medical care and is dangerous." She added that the medical staff had said, "Their hands are shaking, and they cannot provide care within the jurisdiction of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency." In response, Health and Welfare Committee Chair Lee Man-hee said, "We will accurately establish the circumstances of the incident and explain the committee's action plan after consulting with the floor leaders of both parties."

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