Gov't expands Korea's only rehab hospital for traffic accident victims

A traffic accident victim exercises with a robotic assistance at the National Traffic Injury Rehabilitation Hospital in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. Courtesy of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

YANGPYEONG, Gyeonggi Province — The government has begun expanding the country’s only hospital dedicated to rehabilitating victims of traffic accidents, as it seeks to help patients recover more quickly and at lower cost in an improved, streamlined setting.

The National Traffic Injury Rehabilitation Hospital earlier this month broke ground for a new rehab center for outpatient treatment in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which runs the hospital, has invested 12 billion won ($8.7 million) in building the two-story rehab center. The first floor will serve pediatric patients and the second floor will be for adults, with a total floor area of 2,062 square meters. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2027.

The new facility comes as the hospital has been suffering a shortage of space. Since its introduction in 2014, the hospital has provided treatment on both an inpatient and outpatient basis. Last year, the total inpatient number peaked at 124,510, pushing the hospital bed utilization rate to 87.1 percent. Outpatients also reached a record high at 75,375 people.

With 23 doctors, 120 nurses, 122 medical assistants and 273 hospital beds, the hospital expects the new building will help it better utilize resources for recovering patients with more serious injuries, such as paralysis and amputation. There were worries that without the additional space, hospital exercise rooms, waiting rooms and other facilities would become excessively crowded.

The National Traffic Injury Rehabilitation Hospital in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province / Courtesy of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

The hospital said it has not been able to concentrate on treating patients with more serious injuries because it sees patients of all injury levels without priority.

“We should pay more attention to seriously injured patients than those with minor injuries. It’s by no means discrimination against the latter group but an ideal social consensus that will allow the seriously injured patients to recover promptly and get back to their daily lives. That’s how we can reduce the country’s so-called social costs,” said Kim Tae-woo, medical director and clinical associate professor at the hospital.

“The new rehab center requires only medical assistants to operate, with no need for doctors or nurses, posing no risk amid the country's ongoing doctor shortage.”

The ministry established the hospital in response to Korea's average of 20,000 traffic accident victims every year, requiring 7,100 hospital beds. Previously, most rehab facilities primarily served people with geriatric illnesses like dementia.

The hospital currently draws doctors from Seoul National University Hospital, which was commissioned to operate the hospital from 2019 to 2029. The Catholic University of Korea Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital operated the hospital from 2014 to 2019 but declined to extend due to financial losses.

"As a public medical center, we have a mission to provide more than treatment, improving quality of life for patients with serious injuries and returning them home healthy," said Bang Moon-suk, president and director of the hospital.