"Itaewon Club Cluster Infection Testing Surge" ... 'Walk-Through Screening Clinic' Operated in Hannam-dong

On the 12th, as the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) related to Itaewon clubs increases, citizens and foreigners are lining up to get tested for COVID-19 at a screening clinic set up at Soonchunhyang University Seoul Hospital in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] As the demand for testing surged due to a cluster infection of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at Itaewon clubs, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will support a 'Walk-Through Screening Clinic' in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, and operate it starting from the 13th.

The walk-through screening clinic, installed in the public parking lot next to the Hannam-dong Community Service Center in Yongsan-gu (224-19 Itaewon-ro), operates from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both weekdays and weekends. The city secured a pool of 114 volunteer doctors and Seoul Medical Association personnel, deploying 36 staff members from the first day.

The city is conducting the nation's first 'anonymous testing' starting from the 11th, where only phone numbers are verified upon request, encouraging visitors to Itaewon clubs to get tested. The number of tests increased dramatically from 3,496 on the 10th, the day before anonymous testing began, to 6,544 on the 11th and 8,343 on the 12th, representing a 6 to 10 times surge at health centers nationwide.

In particular, the Yongsan-gu Health Center screening clinic saw tests rise from 70 on the 7th to 726 on the 12th, more than a tenfold increase. To support smooth testing, the city decided on the 12th to establish an additional screening clinic and immediately installed and supported the walk-through screening clinic within a day.

Through the walk-through screening clinic, the city plans to enable citizens who visited clubs and pubs in Itaewon between April 24 and May 6 to receive rapid testing without concerns about personal information protection or safety.

Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, emphasized, "Since the fight against infectious diseases is a race against time, we urge visitors to Itaewon clubs to get tested immediately," adding, "Seoul will do its utmost to overcome COVID-19 on the front lines together with its citizens."

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