Pediatric Emergency Medicine Society, KMA Criticize Coercive ER Probe: "Police Must Apologize"

Seven Specialists at Ajou University Hospital's Pediatric Emergency Center Signal Plans to Resign
"Police Must Take Responsibility if Care Is Paralyzed"

The medical community has called on police to apologize and take steps to prevent a recurrence over the search and seizure at the Pediatric Emergency Medical Center at Ajou University Hospital. After the search, which was conducted as part of an investigation into the death of a child patient, seven of the center’s nine specialists said they intended to resign. The medical community strongly criticized the police, warning that the pediatric emergency care system was at risk of collapse.

Kim Taekwoo, president of the Korean Medical Association, holds an emergency press conference at the National Assembly Communication Center on the 15th, condemning the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency's search and seizure of a pediatric emergency medical center during its investigation into the death of a child patient. Yonhap News Agency

On October 28, the Korean Society of Pediatric Emergency Medicine issued a statement demanding an immediate apology from the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency. “The word ‘regrettable,’ offered instead of an apology or an expression of remorse, is an insult to medical staff on the front lines,” it said. The criticism followed the police’s response the previous day, when ruling and opposition lawmakers at a comprehensive parliamentary audit by the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee called for an apology over the search and seizure, and police responded that the situation was “regrettable.”

The society also alleged that police disrupted emergency room care during the search. According to the society, after about an hour of cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the day the child patient died, police entered the emergency center before treatment and prescriptions had been completed. The society said that detectives and forensic investigators remained at the center for about 40 minutes, demanded an interview with the specialist responsible for the patient’s care while the doctor needed to continue treating patients, and filmed treatment areas without consent.

The society also disputed the police’s explanation that no patients were present at the time and therefore care was not disrupted, saying, “The examination room and beds where the search was conducted were never empty.” It also took issue with the police visiting the emergency center three times on the day of the search and sending the hospital an official letter on October 26, the day before the parliamentary audit, requesting the identities of the medical staff who treated the child patient who died. The society said the search had been conducted without the police even identifying the doctor in charge.

The society called on the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency to apologize to medical staff and the public for disrupting care and for its testimony at the parliamentary audit, and to disclose the specific grounds for the search and seizure and the internal decision-making process. In particular, it asked the agency to draw up and publish, by November, guidelines for emergency room dispatches and on-site responses following 112 calls, and to submit an official report to the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee.

The Korean Medical Association (KMA) also issued a separate statement that day, criticizing the police for coercive investigative practices and evading responsibility. The KMA said, “Forcing a doctor who was caring for patients on site to leave, and proceeding with a search and seizure without prior coordination or a request for voluntary submission, was an unequivocal act of disrupting medical care that interfered with treatment for emergency patients.” It also called for those responsible for the investigative approach to be held accountable and to apologize, and for rules to be established to protect patients and medical staff.

The KMA also stressed that Ajou University Hospital’s pediatric emergency center is a key hub for treating critically ill children in emergencies. The center ranked second nationwide with a composite score of 100.4 points in the regional emergency center evaluation, had the highest nationwide share of accepted patient transfers at 263.1%, and ranked second nationwide with 214.7 cases of stabilization treatment for critically ill pediatric patients.

Ajou University Hospital had earlier said that seven of the nine specialists at its pediatric emergency center had expressed their intention to resign. However, they have not yet actually submitted their resignation letters.

The society warned that “if the demands are not met, further departures of medical staff may follow.” The KMA likewise said, “If a gap in pediatric emergency care puts the lives of child patients at risk, the police who conducted an excessive investigation will be responsible.” Both organizations urged the government and the National Assembly to take practical measures to protect the pediatric emergency care system and prevent similar incidents from happening again.

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