The Rhetoric of "Masks and Handwashing Are the Best Vaccine" Is Not a Declarative Statement

'Quarantine Control Tower' Jeong Eun-kyeong and Kwon Jun-wook Emphasize in Mave Briefing
Transmission Through Close Contact and Reduced Vaccine Effectiveness
"Vaccines Take Time and Dramatic Effects Are Difficult to Expect Even After Vaccination"

Citizens wearing masks and taking a walk at Seokchon Lake in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Daeyeol] "Masks are a self-vaccine and a seatbelt that prevent one's own infection in the absence of vaccines or treatments, and also block transmission to others if one happens to be infected..." (Jung Eun-kyung, Head of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, September 17 regular briefing)

"Humanity only started managing spitting on the streets or throwing filth recklessly about 130 years ago. It was to control tuberculosis and waterborne infectious diseases. In the near future, behavioral rules including mask-wearing and social distancing might become daily norms or regulations for all humanity." (Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Head, October 6 regular briefing)

Quarantine (防疫), literally the act of preventing the spread of epidemics, has become a national mission. Among them, a key figure in the government organization coordinating quarantine measures at the forefront never fails to emphasize certain points whenever appearing before the public. They ask people to wear masks, follow handwashing hygiene rules, and maintain social distancing. These are results learned firsthand by medical professionals witnessing the virus spreading on the front lines of quarantine.

Jung Eun-kyung, Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, listens to questions during the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee's audit of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency held on the morning of the 8th at the Osong headquarters in Cheongju.

Masks and Social Distancing: Quarantine Measures Proven 100 Years Ago
Uncertainty Remains Even if COVID-19 Vaccines Arrive Next Year

This aligns with the fundamental nature of medical work, which is to ground solutions based on numerous empirical cases. For example, many visitors on the same floor of a cafe were infected after a confirmed case visited, but the staff who stayed longer and wore masks were not infected; at a door-to-door sales briefing, everyone except one person wearing a mask was infected; and at a daycare center where children spent nearly half a day together, no further transmission occurred thanks to mask-wearing. Such cases have been revealed through epidemiological investigations.

At the beginning of this year when the COVID-19 outbreak occurred, no one knew much about the virus, and everyone was confused. From that time, quarantine authorities have emphasized the need to wear masks and reduce contact through social distancing. In fact, these measures are long-established basics for preventing infectious disease spread. When the Spanish flu pandemic occurred 100 years ago, Western countries already enforced physical isolation and mask-wearing. Frequently washing hands, which are the most active and dirty parts of our body (meaning they are most likely to carry viruses or bacteria), is effective not only for preventing infectious diseases.

We cannot hold overly optimistic views about vaccines still under development, not only because they will be available much later but also because expecting dramatic effects is unrealistic. Although some vaccines are in the final stages of clinical trials, it is likely they will only be available by next spring or summer at the earliest.

Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters

This assumes that vaccines will be released without thoroughly examining side effects in large populations. Even if any country or pharmaceutical company worldwide releases a vaccine, our health authorities will cautiously introduce it while monitoring vaccination trends in those countries, reflecting concerns about possible side effects.

Experts are also skeptical about whether vaccination will significantly reduce the chance of infection. This is due to the basic nature of respiratory viral diseases. Even with influenza vaccination, infections frequently occur. In the case of hepatitis, which affects organs inside the body, vaccination provides over 90% preventive effect, but the nose and throat's upper respiratory tract are outside the body, so antibody cells cannot operate there. Some antibodies can reach the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract to fight, but it is difficult to control this with vaccines.

This is why influenza vaccine effectiveness is generally considered successful at about 50%. Oh Myung-don, Chair of the Central Clinical Committee for New Infectious Diseases composed of medical staff and health authorities managing COVID-19 patients in Korea and a professor at Seoul National University College of Medicine, said at a press conference in August, "Even if a vaccine is developed, it alone cannot end the pandemic," adding, "Currently, following personal quarantine rules such as wearing masks, social distancing, and handwashing can have higher preventive effects than any vaccine."

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