The Real Story Behind Ju Ji-hoon’s The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call

A ray of hope has emerged for a trauma specialist training center that was on the brink of closure.

On February 6, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced that the city would inject 500 million KRW ($370,000) from its disaster management fund into the Trauma Specialist Training Center at Korea University Guro Hospital.

The center, established in 2014 as part of the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s project to nurture trauma specialists in the Seoul region, has trained over 20 specialists in the past 11 years. However, with the annual 900 million KRW in government funding cut this year, the center was on the verge of shutting down—until Mayor Oh stepped in.

During the announcement, Mayor Oh referenced the hit Netflix drama The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call, starring Ju Ji-hoon and Choo Young-woo, which highlighted the challenges faced by trauma centers. “In the drama, trauma centers, despite saving lives, are often first on the chopping block due to poor profitability,” Oh remarked.

He emphasized the center’s critical role, stating, “This center has produced 20 life-saving specialists over 11 years and treated 571 critically injured patients just last year. If it were to close, the gap in emergency medical care would only grow wider.”

To prevent that, he directed his team to review solutions and approved the emergency fund allocation to keep the training center operational. Additionally, the city plans to expand the training system to other hospitals.

“Trauma specialists are the last hope for patients in life-threatening emergencies,” Mayor Oh stated. “Training them is not only vital for citizens’ survival but also a key responsibility of the city. Seoul will protect and maintain the city’s medical safety net.”