77 Nursing Officer Cadets Also Deployed for COVID Support

A total of 85 nursing cadets, including 9 male students, were admitted to the Armed Forces Nursing Academy.

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter]Cadets of the Republic of Korea Military Nursing Academy, who have not yet been officially commissioned with rank insignia, are being urgently dispatched to the frontlines of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) response. Earlier in March, the military advanced the graduation date of the Nursing Academy to deploy all newly commissioned nursing officers to medical sites in Daegu, but this is the first time that cadets still in training are being mobilized amid the COVID-19 crisis.

On the 18th, the Republic of Korea Military Nursing Academy announced that it will support 77 third-year nursing cadets and 4 nursing officers at residential treatment centers. Among them, 56 cadets and 3 nursing officers will be assigned starting today to three residential treatment centers located in Gyeonggi Province and Chungcheongnam Province, where they will immediately begin their duties.

The remaining personnel will be deployed later to residential treatment centers designated by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters. Under the guidance and supervision of professional medical personnel such as doctors and nurses, the cadets will perform tasks including vital signs measurement, non-contact symptom monitoring, medication support, and assistance with PCR testing.

The duration of the mission is tentatively set for one month, with the possibility of changes depending on the COVID-19 situation.

The military authorities explained that this deployment is in accordance with Article 19 of the Enforcement Rules of the Medical Service Act, which allows students majoring in medicine, dentistry, Korean medicine, and nursing to perform duties under the supervision of medical personnel during national disaster situations.

The cadets have completed basic nursing practice at university hospital level, as well as nursing practice this year in the intensive care unit, emergency room, and wards of the Armed Forces Capital Hospital. They also received disaster emergency nursing education prior to deployment to the COVID-19 frontlines.

Cadet First Lieutenant Choi Yu-ji (21, 62nd class) said, "Seeing the 60th class seniors rush to Daegu immediately after their graduation and commissioning ceremonies, I resolved to become an excellent nursing officer who dedicates herself to the nation and its people." She emphasized, "I will fulfill my duties with a sense of mission based on the nursing expertise I have steadily built up so far."

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