Oh Se-hoon: "5 Billion Won Invested in Severe Trauma Training Center 'Facing Closure Risk'"

Budget Cut During National Assembly Review...
Building a Medical Safety Net

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced during the National Assembly budget review process that he will invest 500 million won in the Korea University Guro Hospital Training Center, which is facing closure due to the complete budget cut.

On the 6th, Mayor Oh mentioned a scene from the Netflix drama Severe Trauma Center on Facebook and made this statement. In the drama, the hospital's most profitable departments are depicted as the funeral hall ranked first, the parking lot second, the restaurant third, and the severe trauma center last. Mayor Oh said, "Regrettably, this scene accurately reflects the reality of our medical system."

Yonhap News

Mayor Oh explained, "The severe trauma center, which saves lives, is always 'the first target for closure' because it is the 'least profitable' department," adding, "In fact, the Korea University Guro Hospital Training Center, which was responsible for training severe trauma specialists, is now on the brink of closure. This is because the entire 900 million won support budget was cut during the National Assembly budget review process."

He continued, "This center, which has produced 20 life-saving specialists over 11 years, treated 571 severe trauma patients in a single year two years ago, making it an essential facility," and said, "If this center disappears, the gap in emergency medical care will widen further. I have instructed the responsible department to review measures to prevent this crisis."

Mayor Oh conveyed that the city government decided to allocate 500 million won from the disaster management fund to the Korea University Guro Hospital Training Center to maintain its training functions. He also added, "Furthermore, we plan to expand the specialist training system to other hospitals."

He emphasized, "Training (severe trauma specialists) is the mayor's natural duty to protect the lives and safety of citizens," and stated, "Seoul City will take responsibility for establishing and safeguarding the medical safety net."