A defector's treatment for critical injuries suffered during his dramatic dash from North Korea has highlighted a shortage of South Korean trauma doctors and underscored Seoul's lack of preparedness in the event of hostilities with Pyongyang.
The defector, identified only by his family name of Oh, was shot at least four times by his former comrades during his daring escape into South Korea on Nov. 13.
American military helicopters flew the wounded soldier not to one of the many hospitals in Seoul but to the Ajou University trauma center, an hour farther south of the capital.