Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40045207›Full record

Observational studyBMC emergency medicine2025

Impact of the South Korean government's medical school expansion announcement on pediatric emergency department visits.

Arum Choi, Beom Joon Kim, Jooyoung Lee, Sukil Kim, Woori Bae

Abstract readObservational Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in BMC emergency medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Arum ChoiDepartment of Radiology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Beom Joon KimDepartment of Pediatrics, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Jooyoung LeeDepartment of Pediatrics, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Sukil KimDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Woori BaeDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea. baewool7777@hanmail.net.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn February 2024, the South Korean government announced a 67% increase in medical school admissions (2,000 more students), leading to the resignation of approximately 10,000 residents from major university hospitals. This study investigated the impact of these resignations on pediatric emergency department (PED) visits at a major tertiary hospital in Korea.

methodsWe conducted a retrospective observational study analyzing PED visits under 15 years old at a tertiary hospital from January 2019 to May 12, 2024. After excluding cases with missing diagnostic codes or disposition records, we analyzed visits during the 12-week period from February 19 to May 12 across different years (2019-2024). We used segmented regression of Interrupted Time Series (ITS) analysis to evaluate the impact of three key events: the COVID-19 onset, lifting of mask-wearing mandates, and residents' resignation, adjusting for seasonal variations and autocorrelation.

resultsAmong 11,574 analyzed cases, weekly PED visits decreased significantly after residents' resignation (133.6 ± 22.4) compared to pre-COVID-19 (246.3 ± 45.2) and post-COVID-19 (263.7 ± 61.2) periods. The proportion of KTAS 3 cases increased to 67.2% during the resignation period compared to pre-COVID-19 (48.9%). ITS analysis revealed significant immediate changes in weekly visits: COVID-19 (-157.81 visits, 95% CI: -202.04 to -113.58), mask mandate removal (48.26 visits, 95% CI: 3.21 to 93.32), and residents' resignation (-77.82 visits, 95% CI: -134.85 to -20.80). Notably, the proportion of infectious diseases increased (36.9% vs. 18.6% pre-COVID-19), while respiratory diseases decreased (20.1% vs. 33.6% pre-COVID-19).

conclusionA substantial reduction in both absolute and relative weekly patient visits was observed following the start of the nationwide resident strike at our pediatric emergency department. Additional studies are needed to better understand how this affected pediatric emergency care delivery and access.

Indexed as

COVID-19Emergency Service, HospitalSchools, MedicalAdolescentChildChild, PreschoolEmergency Room VisitsFemaleHumansInfantInterrupted Time Series AnalysisMaleMasksRepublic of KoreaRetrospective StudiesSARS-CoV-2Emergency Department visitsHealthcare policyPediatric emergency departmentResidents resignationStrikes

Identifiers

PMID40045207
PMCPMC11884209

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.