South Korea's health minister urged the country's medical community to call off their planned strike in protest of the government's decision to raise the admission quota at medical schools.

Health Minister Park Neung-hoo on Thursday proposed resolving issues through dialogue and communication, and seeking ways to upgrade the country's health care system.

This comes as the Korean Intern Resident Association(KIRA) and Korea Medical Association(KMA) have announced plans to hold an all-out strike on Friday and August 14, respectively, in protest of the reform plan.

The minister expressed concern over the strike amid the country's fight against COVID-19, adding that at no time should the public's health and safety be threatened.

Seeking understanding that raising the admission quota is inevitable in balancing regional medical services, the minister vowed to set the details of the reform plan through consultation with the medical community.

The government is set to meet with representatives from the KIRA on Thursday afternoon.