South Korea’s Pediatric Anesthesia Workforce Is Small, Concentrated and Undercompensated, Survey Finds

South Korea has only a small and unevenly distributed corps of anesthesiologists who regularly care for children, according to the first nationwide assessment of the country’s pediatric anesthesia workforce, published as an open-access research paper in BMC Health Services Research on 2 September 2026. The survey, conducted by the Korean Society of Pediatric Anesthesiologists (KSPA), paints a picture of a subspecialty in which most hospitals lack a dedicated pediatric anesthesiologist, nearly all practitioners receive no extra pay for pediatric work, and a majority of those who have stepped away from pediatric practice say they do not intend to return.

The study was designed as a nationwide cross-sectional survey. Between 26 February and 21 March 2025, the KSPA emailed a structured questionnaire to all 235 contactable members of the society. The instrument covered demographic characteristics, practice patterns, training background, workforce challenges and educational needs. Respondents were sorted into two groups: weekly practitioners, defined as those performing pediatric anesthesia or sedation at least once per week, and non-weekly practitioners, who do so less than once per week. The analysis used descriptive statistics, together with a multivariable logistic regression to identify factors independently associated with weekly practice.

Of the 235 members contacted, 159 responded, a response rate of 68 percent. The researchers checked that the respondents did not differ significantly from the full membership in age or geographic region, which supports the representativeness of the sample. Within the respondent group, 92 anesthesiologists, or 58 percent, were weekly practitioners, while 67, or 42 percent, practiced pediatric anesthesia or sedation less than once a week.

One of the most striking findings concerns professional identity. Only 15 percent of respondents reported pediatric anesthesia as their primary area of practice, indicating that for the overwhelming majority, caring for children during surgery or sedation is a secondary activity rather than a dedicated career focus. This is consistent with the definition of the field itself: pediatric anesthesia requires dedicated training and expertise, and the authors note that global workforce surveys have documented substantial disparities in anesthesia provider density, while data on the pediatric anesthesia workforce in South Korea had remained limited until now.

The geography and institutional structure of the workforce also stood out. Among weekly practitioners, 84 percent worked at university hospitals, and 52 percent practiced in Seoul, the capital. In other words, regular pediatric anesthesia practice is heavily concentrated in a small number of academic centers in one city. Two-thirds of respondents reported that their institution lacked a dedicated pediatric anesthesiologist, meaning that in most settings where children receive anesthesia, no subspecialist is permanently assigned to that role.

Financial and medicolegal pressures appear to be central to the shortage. Ninety-eight percent of respondents reported receiving no additional compensation for pediatric anesthesia. Over two-thirds, 68 percent, reported workforce-related difficulties, and the concerns most frequently reported by practitioners were medicolegal exposure, the absence of additional compensation, and limited training opportunities. The authors identify these three factors as priorities that warrant attention in workforce policy.

The survey also captured a signal of attrition. Among non-weekly practitioners, 64 percent reported no intention to return to pediatric practice. This figure describes the stated intentions of anesthesiologists who have already reduced their pediatric workload to less than once a week, and it represents one of the survey’s most direct measures of disengagement from the subspecialty.

To understand which factors were associated with regular pediatric practice, the researchers performed a multivariable logistic regression. University-hospital affiliation emerged as the only factor independently associated with weekly practice. This indicates that, among the variables examined, the institutional environment, rather than other measured characteristics alone, was linked to sustained engagement with pediatric cases.

Taken together, the survey describes a pediatric anesthesia workforce in South Korea that is small, geographically concentrated and, in most institutions, without dedicated subspecialty support. The findings give the KSPA and policymakers a quantitative baseline for the first time, and the authors conclude that the reported concerns — medicolegal exposure, the absence of additional compensation and limited training opportunities — warrant attention in workforce policy.

Subject of Research: A nationwide survey of the pediatric anesthesia workforce and training landscape in South Korea

Article Title: Pediatric anesthesiologist shortage in South Korea: a nationwide survey of workforce and training

Article References: Jang, H.-Y., Shin, W.-J., Jang, Y.-E., Lim, B. G., & Song, I.-K. (2026). Pediatric anesthesiologist shortage in South Korea: a nationwide survey of workforce and training. BMC Health Services Research. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-026-15517-8

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12913-026-15517-8

Keywords: pediatric anesthesia, workforce shortage, South Korea, health services research, anesthesiologists, nationwide survey, medical workforce, training, university hospitals, medicolegal exposure, compensation, KSPA