Gyeongnam Province Launches Mass Testing at High-Risk Facilities Including Nursing Hospitals

Shin Jong-woo, Director of Welfare and Health Bureau of Gyeongnam Province, is taking a commemorative photo after signing an agreement with the Ulsan·Gyeongnam branch of the Korean Tuberculosis Association. (Photo by Gyeongsangnam-do)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Ju-cheol In] Amid the unclear infection route of a family cluster in Changwon-si, Gyeongnam Province, the province is conducting comprehensive testing of high-risk facilities vulnerable to infection to block the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

On the 7th, Gyeongnam Province announced that it will conduct diagnosis and testing targeting about 27,000 people at 507 locations, including nursing hospitals, nursing homes, and psychiatric medical institutions vulnerable to COVID-19.

This testing will be carried out from the 9th to the 20th, with specimen collection support teams formed by the province and city/county governments. The testing will be conducted using pooled screening tests, where 2 to 5 specimens are tested at once.

If the test result is positive, only the corresponding group will be retested to identify infected individuals, a method suitable for quickly testing many subjects.

Earlier, on the 5th, to prevent delays in specimen collection by city/county governments and support rapid testing, the province signed an agreement with the Ulsan-Gyeongnam branch of the Korean Tuberculosis Association to form a province-level specimen collection support team.

Under this agreement, the province will promptly support proactive diagnostic testing in the event of infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19 to prevent the spread of community infections and establish a systematic infectious disease surveillance system.

Both parties will cooperate in supporting specimen collection for COVID-19 diagnostic testing at high-risk facilities, providing rapid testing support in case of cluster infections, and promoting infectious disease prevention.

Shin Jong-woo, Director of the Welfare and Health Bureau of the province, said, “Through the agreement with the Korean Tuberculosis Association, rapid specimen collection support by city/county governments will enhance the speed of testing, which will greatly help in preemptively blocking the spread of COVID-19 within the province.”

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