It is impossible for the DU　Buddhist Hospital in affiliation with the College of Medicine and Oriental Medicine to open in December, even though the School Authority (SA) stated that the Buddhist Hospital will be opened within this year. However, the SA changed its position last month and said that they have to postpone the opening to May or June of next year. This is because they wasted their time on selecting a director of the Buddhist Hospital and didn't sufficiently prepare to open the hospital by the scheduled time. Various matters related to the hospital's opening were submitted to the Board of Trustees (BOT), but the matters weren't acted on. So, the Buddhist Hospital's actual condition weren't investigated on, although the investigation was to take place on Sept. 5.
Controversy about the early opening of the Buddhist Hospital has been a "hot potato" on campus for a long time. Students majoring in Medicine and Oriental Medicine have stopped attending classes. They insist that the hospital has to be opened as soon as possible. On the other hand, the General Student Council (GSC) occupied the Main Building, last semester in protest against the early opening of the hospital. The GSC insists that it is impossible to open the hospital within this year because some preparations for the opening are insufficient. And professors and students don't precisely know the facts about this issue because the SA is not showing all the documents related to the opening of the Buddhist Hospital. Moreover, applicants who want to be staff of the hospital are still waiting the results of their examination, because the announcement of the results was withheld three times. BOT finally gave up on the Sept. 5 investigation because they perceived potential danger with the early opening.
The opening of the Buddhist Hospital was postponed. However, the problems aren't solved. And it's the high time that school members including students, professors and staff try to find a solution to this problem for the future of DU and the Buddhist Hospital.
BOT has to reconsider various problems related to the hospital in general, and the SA also must open all documents concerned with the hospital opening to school members. This will help school members to precisely understand the complex problem. After that, an earnest discussion among all school members is needed to find resolutions.
Now school members have an opportunity to reconsider this "hot potato" issue.

Kim Hye-jeong  bbejeoi@dongguk.edu

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