The new year is here, bringing with it hopes of a new life. While many celebrate the new year with festivities, a specialized medical team hold their ground at a regional trauma center where they battle to save patients’ lives. This special task force utilizes every minute and second to treat patients within the so-called “Golden Hour.”

The physicians at Catholic University of Korea, Ujeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital’s Regional Trauma Center located in North Gyeonggi Province (Center CEO Cho Hang-joo) are on standby 24 hours a day for emergency patients who may arrive at any time. On average, more than 200 trauma patients are carried to the center a month due to the mountainous terrain of the northern part of Gyeonggi, where military units are concentrated.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare designated 17 regional trauma centers around the nation. Despite it being an ongoing problem, trauma centers continue to suffer from a severe lack of workforce, high labor intensity, and poor working conditions. Many hope that the government and its citizens will pay more attention to the regional trauma centers that work towards to save lives.

Medical personnel attend to the trauma patient immediately.

The trauma center staff have their hands full managing the emergency trauma patient.

More than 20 trauma patients arrived at night.

Cho Hang-joo’s phone lights up with never-ending notifications of patients arriving at the trauma center at the break of drawn.

The staff has no time to stop working.

Medical staff suture the patient's open wound in the resuscitation room.

Medical staff keeps their hands and eyes on their patients at all times.

A trauma center physician gets ready to operate on a patient.

The medical staff’s mission is to save as many lives as they can.

The trauma center staff operate on the patient.

 

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