Six of 17 regional trauma centers in South Korea lack specialists in key fields
In short
Six of South Korea’s 17 regional severe trauma centers had no dedicated specialist in at least one of the departments required by law as of the end of last year, according to health ministry data obtained by Democratic Party lawmaker Park Jiwon. The total number of dedicated specialists across the centers fell from 199 in 2021 to 184 in 2025 and stood at 178 as of June this year, even after the government raised labor-cost support and on-duty pay. Wonkwang University Hospital received no applicants for specialist posts from 2023 through this year, and its specialists fell from nine in 2021 to three in 2025.
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Six of South Korea’s 17 regional severe trauma centers had no dedicated specialist in at least one of the departments required by law as of the end of last year, according to health ministry data obtained by Democratic Party lawmaker Park Jiwon and reported by Yonhap. The departments that centers must staff are surgery, thoracic surgery, orthopedics, neurosurgery and emergency medicine. [ 1 ]
The centers named were Mokpo Korea Hospital, without dedicated specialists in surgery, orthopedics and neurosurgery; Ulsan University Hospital, in orthopedics; Daejeon Eulji University Hospital, in neurosurgery; Wonkwang University Hospital, in thoracic surgery and orthopedics; Jeju Halla Hospital, in neurosurgery; and Gyeongsang National University Hospital, in thoracic surgery and emergency medicine. [ 1 ]
Across all departments, the number of dedicated specialists at the regional centers fell from 199 in 2021 to 184 in 2025 and stood at 178 as of June this year. Wonkwang University Hospital received no applicants at all in specialist recruitment from 2023 through this year, Park said, while Chungbuk National University Hospital and Jeju Halla Hospital each sought 15 and 4 specialists this year and also drew no applicants. The government raised labor-cost support for dedicated specialists from 144 million won to 160 million won and increased on-duty pay last year, but the staffing shortage has continued, according to Park. [ 1 ]
The doctors who remain face a heavier load: at Wonkwang University Hospital, specialists fell from nine in 2021 to three in 2025, raising the annual number of severe trauma patients handled per specialist from 55.7 to 142.7. The share of severe trauma patients leaving the region for treatment was 6.06 percent at Mokpo Korea Hospital and 3.17 percent at Wonkwang University Hospital, above the 2.08 percent average. [ 1 ]
“For a regional severe trauma center to treat severely injured patients around the clock, it must stably secure the necessary specialists as well as facilities and equipment,” Park said, calling for regional allowances, long-term service and housing benefits, and education support in areas where hiring is difficult. [ 1 ]
Newsis also reported that the regional severe trauma center at Wonkwang University Hospital has a serious shortage of dedicated specialists. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The data indicate that staffing gaps at regional severe trauma centers have persisted despite higher government payments, which the lawmaker says leaves fewer doctors handling more severely injured patients and pushes some to seek care outside their region. That could affect how reliably the centers can treat severe trauma cases around the clock. The documents do not include a response from the health ministry.
Key facts
- As of the end of last year, six of the country’s 17 regional severe trauma centers had no dedicated specialist in at least one of the five departments required by law: surgery, thoracic surgery, orthopedics, neurosurgery and emergency medicine. [ 1 ]
- The centers named were Mokpo Korea Hospital, Ulsan University Hospital, Daejeon Eulji University Hospital, Wonkwang University Hospital, Jeju Halla Hospital and Gyeongsang National University Hospital. [ 1 ]
- Dedicated specialists across the regional centers fell from 199 in 2021 to 184 in 2025, and stood at 178 as of June this year. [ 1 ]
- Wonkwang University Hospital had no applicants in specialist recruitment from 2023 through this year; Chungbuk National University Hospital and Jeju Halla Hospital also drew no applicants for 15 and 4 posts respectively this year, Park said. [ 1 ]
- Wonkwang University Hospital’s specialists fell from nine in 2021 to three in 2025, raising the annual number of severe trauma patients per specialist from 55.7 to 142.7. [ 1 ]
- Outflow of severe trauma patients outside the region was 6.06 percent at Mokpo Korea Hospital and 3.17 percent at Wonkwang University Hospital, above the 2.08 percent average. [ 1 ]
- The government raised labor-cost support for dedicated specialists from 144 million won to 160 million won and increased on-duty pay last year, but the shortage continued, according to Park. [ 1 ]
- Park called for practical recruitment measures in hard-to-staff areas, including regional allowances, long-term service incentives, and housing and education support. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Wonkwang University Hospital’s regional severe trauma center has a serious shortage of dedicated specialists. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Six of the country’s 17 regional severe trauma centers had no dedicated specialist in at least one department required by law as of the end of last year, according to health ministry data. [ 1 ]
- The number of dedicated specialists at the regional centers declined from 199 in 2021 to 178 as of June this year, according to the same data. [ 1 ]
Still unclear
- Whether any of the vacant specialist posts have been filled since June this year. The documents give figures only up to June and do not say whether recruitment has succeeded since then.
- Why the Newsis article text does not match its headline. Document 2’s headline concerns the trauma center shortage, but its readable article text reports a separate DMZ landmine investigation, and the documents do not explain the mismatch.