2020 Korean Emergency Physician Survey

¹한림대학교동탄성심병원 응급의학과
²을지대학교 노원을지병원 응급의학과
³명지병원 응급의학과
⁴경북대학교 의과대학 응급의학교실
⁵인제대학교 의과대학 응급의학교실
⁶연세대학교 원주의과대학 의학교육학과
⁷동아대학교 의과대학 응급의학교실
⁸KS병원 응급의학과
⁹가톨릭대학교 여의도성모병원 응급의학과
¹⁰순천향대학교 서울병원 응급의학과
¹¹고려대학교 구로병원 응급의학과
¹²여수전남병원 응급의학과
¹³화홍병원 응급의학과
¹⁴연세대학교 원주세브란스기독병원 응급의학과
¹⁵창원경상대학교병원 응급의학과
¹⁶울산대학교 의과대학 예방의학과
¹⁷경희대학교병원 응급의학과

Seon Koo Kim¹

, Kwang Hyun Cho²

, Beom Sok Seo¹⁰

, Suk Jae Choi¹³

, In Hwan Yeo¹⁴

, Ji Hun Kang⁵

, Woo Jin Jung¹⁴

, Dae Sung Lim¹⁵

, Eu Sun Lee¹⁶

, Hyung Min Lee¹⁷

, Soon Joo Wang¹

¹Department of Emergency Medicine, Hallym University Dongtan Sacred Heart Hospital, Hwaseong, Korea
²Department of Emergency Medicine, Nowon Eulji Medical Center, Eulji University, Seoul, Korea
³Department of Emergency Medicine, Myongji Hospital, Goyang, Korea
⁴Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
⁵Department of Emergency Medicine, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea
⁶Department of Medical Education, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea
⁷Department of Emergency Medicine, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea
⁸Department of Emergency Medicine, KS Hospital, Gwangju, Korea
⁹Department of Emergency Medicine, Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
¹⁰Department of Emergency Medicine, Soonchunhyang University Seoul Hospital, Seoul, Korea
¹¹Department of Emergency Medicine, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea
¹²Department of Emergency Medicine, Yeosu Jeonnam Hospital, Yeosu, Korea
¹³Department of Emergency Medicine, Hwahong Hospital, Suwon, Korea
¹⁴Department of Emergency Medicine, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Wouju, Korea
¹⁵Department of Emergency Medicine, Gyeongsang National University Changwon Hospital, Changwon, Korea
¹⁶Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Ulsan, Korea
¹⁷Department of Emergency Medicine, Kyung Hee University Hospital, Seoul, Korea

Correspondence

Soon Joo Wang ,Tel: 031-8086-3153, Fax: 031-8086-2648, Email: erwsj@chol.com,

Received: July 8, 2021; Revised: October 29, 2021 Accepted: November 1, 2021. Published online: August 31, 2022.

ABSTRACT

Objective:
This study was carried out to establish a basis for understanding and correcting the problems of the emergency physicians (EP) in Korea by examining the current status through the 2020 emergency physician survey conducted by the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine (KSEM).
Method:
An online survey was conducted from January 15 to February 26, 2021, through a website and mobile application. The final questionnaire was classified into three types based on the clinical work in the emergency department (ED), current position, and the year of board certification. The contents of the questionnaire were organized into eight themes, and a subcommittee was put in charge of each.
Results:
Of the 400 emergency medical institutions surveyed, 295 hospitals (74.2%) had board-certified EPs, and 1,453 EPs (72.5%) out of 2,000 were working in the ED. Of these, on average, 7.2 EPs worked together, and they worked 11.6 days/153.1 hours per month and did night shifts 5.9 days per month. 30.7% showed excessive sleepiness during the day, and only 9.6% said that they could adhere to mealtimes. 27.1% responded that they suffered from depression. The level of satisfaction was 3.2 points, and 43.0% responded that they would choose emergency medicine (EM) again as their major. The most important factor in choosing EM was the availability of adequate free time. Their responses indicated that the retirement age was 59.7 years, and the upper age limit for the night shift was 54.3 years.
Conclusion:
Though there have been improvements since the first survey in 2010, there was no notable increase in EP satisfaction. Therefore, appropriate future policies should be formulated and implemented based on these survey results.

Key words: Emergency physician; Survey; Workforce; Workload; Well-being