The Korean Medical Association(KMA) has claimed that more than half of the doctors in the nation have disclosed intent to close their operating rooms(OR) as Monday marked the first day of implementation of a rule requiring the installment of surveillance cameras in ORs.

The association made the claim on Monday as it cited the results of a ten-day survey it conducted from September 8 on one-thousand-267 doctors, calling on the government to take steps against the new regulation. 

The survey found that 55-point-seven percent of respondents are willing to close their ORs in protest of the new rule under which hospitals are required to install cameras in operating rooms and video-record surgical procedures to prevent possible abuse against patients under anesthesia.

Also according to the survey, 91-point-two percent of respondents said the rule infringes upon the basic rights of doctors while nearly 91 percent expressed concerns that the new regulation will lead to the collapse of essential medical care with more medical school students avoiding the surgery department. 

Reasons for opposing the installation of surveillance cameras included human rights violation by keeping tabs on workers, seeing medical workers as potential criminals and limiting active treatment. 

The revisions to the Medical Services Act went into effect on Monday, making it mandatory for medical institutions to film operations upon request by patients or their families and keep the footage for at least 30 days.

Those who violate the requirement are subject to fines of up to five million won, or nearly four-thousand U.S. dollars.