South Korea launches 'AI highway' to connect public hospitals nationwide

South Korea is introducing an AI-powered system that analyzes medical records and assists with documentation during patient transfers between public hospitals and regional referrals following surgery or discharge.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare held an inauguration ceremony Wednesday at Gangwon National University Hospital for what it calls the "Public Medical AI Highway," announcing plans to pilot the system at eight hospitals nationwide this year before expanding to 35 sites next year and all 72 public hospitals by 2029.

Advanced medical AI technology has largely been developed and tested at large hospitals in the Greater Seoul area, leaving regional public hospitals with limited access to its benefits.

To close that gap, the government built the Public Medical AI Highway — a distribution network that bundles high-performance medical AI models validated at institutions such as Seoul National University Hospital with national GPU computing resources and a standardized integration platform, then delivers them to regional hub hospitals and secondary public hospitals.

At Wednesday's ceremony, a simulated demonstration used the AI highway link between Gangwon National University Hospital in Chuncheon and Yeongwol Medical Center in Yeongwol. The scenario covered the full care pathway: an emergency pediatric patient at Yeongwol Medical Center, a regional anchor institution, being transferred to Gangwon National University Hospital, a wider regional anchor institution, followed by surgery, discharge and return referral to the local facility.

The demonstration connected the live electronic medical record (EMR) screens of both hospitals to examine how specialized AI could reduce the administrative burden on medical staff and ensure continuity of care.

Documents generated by the AI serve only as drafts to assist clinicians, the ministry said, adding that the attending physician retains full responsibility for final clinical decisions, revisions and electronic signatures to ensure patient safety.

The system demonstrated Wednesday implements the second stage of a three-stage medical AI transformation framework — an EMR-integrated agent, or AI-Integrated EMR, technology.

Most AI tools currently in use at medical facilities operate as standalone systems running on separate screens outside the EMR, forcing physicians to switch between programs during consultations and disrupting their workflow.

The Public Medical AI Highway takes a different approach by embedding AI directly within the clinical interface, where it autonomously analyzes relevant information and drafts documents without requiring physicians to leave the EMR screen.

The ministry will run the pilot through the end of this year at eight hospitals: Gangwon National University Hospital, Seoul National University Hospital, Chonnam National University Hospital, Seoul Medical Center, Seosan Medical Center, Seongnam City Medical Center, Yeongwol Medical Center and Gwangju Christian Hospital.

The full rollout is set to begin in April next year, when 27 additional hospitals will be newly designated to bring the total to as many as 35 participating sites. The ministry aims to complete the network by 2029, connecting all 72 public hospitals — including provincial medical centers and Red Cross hospitals.

Health and Welfare Minister Jeong Eun-kyung said the government would treat this year as the first year of health care AI transformation. "We will build a country where advanced medical AI protects the health of the people, no matter where they live or which public hospital they visit," she said.