전공의와 교수 간 수직적 분업과 형사적 책임에 관한 고찰 - 대법원 2022. 12. 1. 선고 2022도1499 판결에 관한 평석을 중심으로

A Study on the vertical division of labor and criminal responsibility between doctors and professors : Based on the commentary on the Supreme Court's sentence 2022 Do1499 on December 1, 2022

Due to the diversification of diseases and specialization of treatment, team system-oriented healthcare involving multiple doctors and nurses is accepted as universal. In today's medical reality, doctors, nurses, and medical technicians form teams to provide more comprehensive and intensive diagnosis and health care services, while this pattern intensifies as the medical institution grows or the disease becomes more serious. Since this team-oriented healthcare involves several doctors and medical personnel in the course of treatment for one patient, it is essentially accompanied by the division of medical practice between doctors and doctors and, at the same time, supervision of lower-level medical personnel that must be performed by upper-level medical personnel in this organized work performance structure. In other words, the “vertical division of labor in medical service” between upper-level and lower-level medical personnel presupposes instruction or delegation of work, which at the same time means that there is an obligation to supervise and supervise lower-level medical personnel. In particular, it has been considered to have been limited by default to completely delegating work by professors with respect to the attribution of responsibility in the event of bad results from medical practice, or to determine or implement dangerous medical practices without obtaining approval from professors. However, the Supreme Court's ruling expands the existing view by saying that in the case of vertical division of labor, such as professors or doctors, specific medical practices can be fully delegated in consideration of individual and specific circumstances. This will have a significant impact on the delegation, management, and supervision of doctors and nurses in the future, as well as the relationship between the top and bottom. In particular, nurses are expected to change significantly in their relationship with doctors and the range of tasks that nurses can perform due to the recent enactment of nursing laws. Accordingly, the Supreme Court ruling is expected to change the previous view on the law of delegation, which will entail more complex and diversified changes in clinical fields not only in the relationship between doctors but also in the relationship between doctors and nurses. This paper aims to improve the health of the people and reorganize the medical provision system by examining legislation and recent government policy announcements related to the target judgment and clinical reality, and suggesting the direction of improvement of laws and systems.