The government said Monday it will not hold trainee doctors accountable if they return to work by Thursday as intern and resident doctors stayed off the job for the seventh day in protest of the medical school quota hike plan. Interior Minister Lee Sang-min made the remarks during a government meeting as the ongoing collective action by trainee doctors has slashed surgeries at major general hospitals in Seoul by up to 50 percent of capacity and has caused patients inconvenience. Thousands of intern and resident doctors have stayed away from their training hospitals since last Tuesday in protest against the plan to increase the number of medical school seats by 2,000 starting next year from the current 3,058 to address a shortage of doctors. "Facing up to the seriousness of the current situation, I appeal for the last time ... the government won't hold you accountable for the past if you return to the hospitals by Thursday," Lee said. The interior minister emphasized that the collective action is exacerba ting chaos in hospitals, while the threat to patients' lives and heath is "materializing." "I urge you to remember that your voice is louder and more effectively conveyed when you remain beside patients," Lee said, addressing trainee doctors. "The hospitals you left are filled with fears and anxieties. I hope you will return to the workplaces where you have painstakingly guarded day and night and engage in dialogue for better medical service conditions," he added. Source: Yonhap News Agency