Beginning Monday, hospitals will be required to set up surveillance cameras in operating rooms and record surgery procedures upon request of patients, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
The revised Medical Service Act also mandates the storage of the videos for a minimum of 30 days.
The regulations apply to operations in which the patient is anesthetized or unconscious, but not in urgent cases where the surgery must be done immediately or when there are valid reasons.
The recorded videos can be provided to relevant institutions for investigation or trials, but only with the consent of the patient and all medical personnel involved.
Those found to have leaked, damaged, or falsified the footage may be subject to a fine of up to 50 million won or up to five years of imprisonment.