Former Director of Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Professor Lee Jong-gu: "Unconditional Rejection of Chinese People Is Unnecessary"

Attendance at Countermeasure Meeting Hosted by Seoul Mayor
"There Must Be a Clear Epidemiological Link"

On the 31st, a countermeasure meeting chaired by Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon was held at Seoul City Hall.

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] A former director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has drawn attention by expressing the view that discrimination against Chinese people is unnecessary despite the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia).

Professor Jong-Koo Lee of Seoul National University, who served as the director of the KCDC for four years starting in 2007, attended a comprehensive countermeasure meeting held at Seoul City Hall on the 31st, chaired by Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, and said, "Measures should be taken based on accurate epidemiological connections."

Professor Lee stated, "It is natural to think there might be a risk if there are Chinese people, but such measures can lead to racial discrimination," adding, "If someone came on a short-term visa two weeks ago, there is no problem. It is appropriate to take measures considering the incubation period." He also said, "Untrained epidemiologists are actually meaningless." He expressed concern that "the public-private cooperation system might be somewhat weak," and urged, "Rather than simply sending official letters asking for cooperation, conditions should be created for medical institutions to take the lead and work."

Professor Pyung-ryun Choi, an infectious disease specialist at Seoul National University Hospital who also attended the meeting, emphasized that even if infected with the novel coronavirus, there is no major problem if treated well. Professor Choi explained, "The public is excessively anxious because there are currently no treatments or vaccines, but the absence of treatments does not necessarily mean that treatment is impossible."

He added, "Due to the nature of viral infections, if patients endure for about 2 to 3 weeks, the likelihood of recovery is high," and "With the best treatment, recovery is possible, and medical institutions are prepared to treat patients if they occur, so there is no need for excessive worry." He also requested the Seoul city government, saying, "(Nationally designated isolation beds at places like Seoul National University Hospital) should be able to safely treat and recover severe patients when they occur," and "Screening of patients should be handled by frontline public health centers to prevent such (screening) demand from coming to us."

Mayor Park announced that he would establish a permanent advisory body centered on Professors Lee and Choi.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.