A university hospital, Sungakarolo Hospital and Hyundai Women's and Children's Hospital are all slated for new construction or relocation to the site.
Sunchon National University has been selected over Mokpo National University as the candidate for a national medical school in South Jeolla Province, and the site for its affiliated university hospital has been confirmed in the Jorye-dong (Wangji district) area of Suncheon.
According to Suncheon city and Sunchon National University, under the MOU for establishing the medical school, the city is in talks to provide 151,719 square meters of city-owned land on the slopes of Wanguisan — within the Wangji district residential zone — as the medical school site.
The location sits just one bus stop from Sungakarolo Hospital, the largest hospital in South Jeolla Province with 600 beds, and borders the planned relocation site of Hyundai Women's and Children's Hospital, the only facility in the country equipped for perinatal care covering the period from the 29th week of pregnancy through one week after birth. Officials expect the proximity to generate significant synergies.
Suncheon's Sungwang-ro — the corridor running through Yeonhyang-dong past KB Kookmin Bank, Jorye intersection and Sungakarolo Hospital — is emerging as a medical town hub. The road is served frequently by Suncheon's busiest bus route, No. 77, making it the top choice for clinics and hospitals looking to open new practices.
If the Ministry of Education grants accreditation for the medical school, Sunchon National University plans to receive the site from the city and aims to open by 2030. The development would include a department of medicine, a nursing department, an affiliated general hospital with around 500 beds, a research building, dormitories, support facilities and a walking trail on Wanguisan.
Sunchon National University originally had access to a 56,558-square-meter medical site in the Sindae district of Haeryong-myeon, but determined it was too small to accommodate all the educational facilities required for a university hospital. The university subsequently negotiated a change in conditions to receive the larger city-owned site in Jorye-dong.
"When a medical school comes in, it is not just the hospital — dormitories, faculty research buildings and laboratory facilities all need to be supported as well, so 56,558 square meters leaves little room for expansion," a Sunchon National University official said. "We submitted a plan to the Ministry of Education based on 500 beds, but there are also plans to expand the bed count later depending on the number of doctors and the range of medical departments."
A Suncheon city official said that after a hospital agreement for the Sindae district medical site fell through in 2017, part of the land was carved off to build the Sindae Library, leaving the medical site too small. "The area around the drama series filming location in Jorye-dong is a key transportation hub with well-established medical infrastructure including Sungakarolo Hospital, so we judged it to be the optimal location," the official said. "We will work closely with all parties to ensure the medical school and university hospital — the most long-sought project in eastern South Jeolla Province — proceeds without a hitch."
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