Incheon City Secures 569 Dedicated COVID-19 Beds... Additional Operation of Residential Treatment Centers

Incheon Medical Center operating dedicated beds for infectious diseases
Photo by Incheon City

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City announced on the 2nd that it plans to expand dedicated infectious disease hospital beds and additionally increase the operation of residential treatment centers in response to the rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

According to the city, dedicated infectious disease beds are secured and operational at three hospitals?incheon Medical Center, Gachon University Gil Hospital, and Inha University Hospital?with a total of 400 beds, of which 152 beds (38%) are currently in use.

However, due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the metropolitan area, anticipating a future shortage of beds, the city has secured a total of 569 beds by adding 169 beds after consultations with the three hospitals.

In addition, the city plans to further operate residential treatment centers, which are used for treating asymptomatic or mild patients.

Currently, Incheon City uses the Gyeonggi-Sudogwon 1 Residential Treatment Center located in Gwangju City, Gyeonggi Province. However, since 192 people were admitted to this facility with a capacity of 216 (as of August 31), showing an 88.8% occupancy rate, the city decided to additionally operate its own residential treatment centers within Incheon.

First, the city will operate the Jung-gu Gyeongjeong Training Center, which can accommodate 114 people, and, with cooperation from SK Group, has secured the SK Muui Training Center with 65 rooms (capacity for 130 people) as a backup facility to prepare for additional operations.

An official from Incheon City stated, "We are consulting with medical institutions on installing and operating severe treatment beds in preparation for an increase in severe patients," and added, "If confirmed cases increase further, we will consider securing additional residential treatment centers."

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