"Air Conditioner Directed from Medical Staff to Patients" Summer Screening Clinic Guidelines Established (Update)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The government has established air conditioning guidelines for summer screening clinics to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the 19th, Yoon Tae-ho, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters' quarantine team, stated at a regular briefing held at the Government Complex Sejong, "We issued operational guidelines yesterday that specify the direction of airflow, filter installation, and other measures to prevent droplet spread when installing air conditioners in screening clinics."

As the weather gets hotter, the difficulties faced by medical staff working in protective gear at summer screening clinics have increased. Therefore, measures were devised to minimize infection risk while enabling diagnosis and testing at the screening clinics.

Air conditioners in summer screening clinics must be equipped with HEPA filters, which purify the air by filtering fine particles, and backflow prevention dampers to prevent air from flowing backward, thereby enhancing safety.

To minimize infection from patients, the airflow direction must be unidirectional?from medical staff toward patients. The airflow should be directed as upward as possible to minimize contact between the air and droplets.

Medical personnel must wear personal protective equipment such as Level D protective suits according to existing protocols.

Yoon said, "Thorough pre-inspection and preparation are necessary for the first summer since the COVID-19 outbreak," adding, "Each local government plans to establish and prepare screening clinic installation and operation plans so that screening clinics can be systematically operated according to the level of infection spread."

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