South Korea will dispatch cardiac arrest and severe trauma patients to pre-designated hospitals while regional emergency medical centers assign hospitals for other critical patients to 119 emergency responders. The move aims to eliminate the so-called emergency room "runaround" by allowing paramedics to focus on on-site treatment rather than scrambling to find available hospitals.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Fire Agency announced on the 25th that they will conduct a three-month pilot program (March-May) in Gwangju, North Jeolla, and South Jeolla provinces. Under the "Emergency Patient Transport System Innovation" initiative, regional emergency medical centers will directly verify hospital availability and select receiving facilities for critical patients. Authorities plan to analyze results and consider nationwide expansion in the second half of the year.
The core change involves restructuring transport procedures for severe emergency patients (pre-KTAS levels 1-2). The most critical patients, including those in cardiac arrest, will be immediately transported to pre-designated hospitals. For other severe cases, 119 paramedics will simultaneously transmit patient information to both the regional emergency medical center and the 119 Emergency Dispatch Center. The regional center will then select an appropriate hospital after verifying availability based on medical resources such as intensive care units and operating rooms.
When selecting a hospital within an appropriate timeframe proves difficult, a "priority receiving hospital" system will be activated. These facilities will provide initial stabilization treatment before transferring patients to hospitals capable of definitive care, coordinated through the regional center. The 119 service will support transportation for secondary transfers of critical patients.
The medical community has expressed mixed reactions. The Korean Society of Emergency Medicine said the pilot program is "positive in that it began through communication and collaboration" and expressed hope it will "serve as an opportunity to improve problems in emergency medical care." However, the Korean Emergency Medicine Physicians Association, primarily representing employed and private practice physicians, criticized the plan as "a typical armchair theory considering the convenience of specific professional groups and political interests," adding that it will "persuade members not to participate."