Gwangju Faces Bed Shortage, Sends COVID Patients to Nearby Areas

COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Regular Briefing
Gwangju Reports 51 Cases Over Six Days... ICU Beds at Full Capacity
Regularization of Overseas Risk Assessment... Supplementing Dormitory and Living Quarantine Guidelines

On the morning of the 3rd, the entrance door of SKJ Hospital in Buk-gu, Gwangju was firmly closed. SKJ Hospital has suspended medical services and is conducting a thorough investigation of medical staff and inpatients after an inpatient tested positive for COVID-19.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] As the number of COVID-19 patients rapidly increases in the Gwangju area, the government has stepped in to provide support at the pan-government level by jointly utilizing hospital beds in neighboring regions and dispatching personnel.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on the 3rd, the Honam region, including Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Jeonbuk, will prioritize the use of available beds at infectious disease-dedicated hospitals in the area by utilizing a joint response system for hospital beds. Jeonnam will provide 20 beds, and Jeonbuk will provide 21 beds, totaling 41 beds. Mild patients will be treated at the Central region and International No.1 Living Treatment Centers, which were prepared when confirmed cases increased in the Daejeon area.

According to health authorities, 51 people in Gwangju were confirmed positive for COVID-19 over the past six days. Social distancing measures have been raised to level 2 since the beginning of this month. Kim Kang-rip, the chief coordinator of the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said, "The operating rate of infectious disease hospitals in Gwangju is about 82%, and beds for severe patients are already saturated," adding, "If there is a shortage of beds in the Honam region, we will also consider transferring patients to other regions."

On the morning of the 3rd, Jeong Sye-kyun, the Prime Minister, is speaking at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting held in the Disaster Situation Room of Gwangju City Hall, Seo-gu, Gwangju.

The government has also decided to support medical staff and epidemiological investigation personnel. Although the scale is not large, sporadic cluster infections have been confirmed, and there is a shortage of epidemiological investigators to track patients and contacts and cut off additional infection chains. Since the end of last month, a team of nine health officers and investigators has been dispatched to the field, and if necessary, additional epidemiological investigators will be supported from Jeonnam and Jeonbuk.

Furthermore, if Gwangju requests additional medical personnel, they will be promptly supported, and local community resources will be utilized, such as dispatching one person from the Daegu Social Service Center. In addition, 3,000 masks, 500 protective suits, and 500 face shields requested by infectious disease-dedicated hospitals will be sent on the same day. The city has raised social distancing to level 2, and local national institutions also plan to participate.

Last April, overseas arrivals were receiving transportation-related information at the arrival hall of Terminal 1, Incheon International Airport. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

Meanwhile, the government has decided to regularize the previously ad hoc COVID-19 risk assessments by country. Previously, measures such as restricting visas or reducing flights were taken based on the trends of confirmed cases and the scale of domestic entries for each country. Going forward, the Central Disease Control Headquarters, along with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and other related ministries, will share the situation weekly to regularly evaluate and adjust measures.

Detailed guidelines have been newly created and added for areas or facilities that previously had no specific living quarantine guidelines. Fields such as training facilities, academic events, and dormitories had no guidelines until now but have been newly established. Guidelines independently operated by each ministry for logistics centers and water leisure activities have also been incorporated into the overall guidelines. Some facilities, such as restaurants, religious facilities, and bathhouses, have been supplemented by reflecting internal and external opinions.

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