“The Trauma Code” Actress from Doctor Family Reveals She Once Worked as Hospital Cleaner

Rising actress Shin Ha-young is drawing attention not only for her performances but also for her unique background hailing from a family of doctors that stretches back to her great-grandfather.

Since her debut in 2019 with Doctor Prisoner, Shin Ha-young has built a diverse acting portfolio, appearing in dramas such as Soul Mechanic, Private Lives, Not Yet Thirty, Mouse, Let Me Be Your Knight, Now, We Are Breaking Up, Extraordinary Attorney Woo, and Doona.

In Extraordinary Attorney Woo, she appeared in a single-episode storyline but gained notable buzz for her striking resemblance to actress Shin Se-kyung, earning her sudden popularity with just one scene.

Recently, she starred in the trending Netflix series The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call, portraying Cheon Jang-mi, a bold and passionate senior trauma nurse with five years of experience. Her natural portrayal of a nurse caught viewers’ attention—and it turns out her real-life background played a role.

In an interview, Shin Ha-young shared, “My father is a doctor, and although my mother now works in a different field, she originally studied nursing. I used to help out by cleaning at the hospital sometimes, so I naturally observed the tone and behavior of nurses and staff. That really helped me.”

Shin Ha-young’s lineage is equally fascinating. Rumors circulated that her great-grandfather once served as Emperor Gojong’s personal physician. She clarified, “He wasn’t the official royal physician, but I heard he was the first Western doctor to open a clinic in Hanyang (modern-day Seoul). So it’s believed he may have treated Emperor Gojong at some point.”

Before acting, Shin Ha-young was academically gifted and majored in Western Painting at Ewha Womans University. She later went on to prepare for a master’s degree at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York, one of the top three art schools in the city.

However, while studying abroad, she experienced doubts about her long pursuit of fine arts and began exploring film and literature. Within a year, she dropped out to pursue acting, driven by a sense of urgency. “I didn’t want to live with regret,” she explained. “I felt like if I didn’t try acting right then, I never would.”

From scrubbing hospital floors to commanding the screen, Shin Ha-young’s fearless leap into acting and her family legacy of medicine continue to captivate both fans and industry watchers.