Emergency On-Site Response Team Dispatched to Nursing Facilities Amid Repeated Cluster Infections... Initial Response Support (Update)

Image source=Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] The government will dispatch emergency on-site response teams to nursing hospitals and facilities where COVID-19 cluster infections have occurred. This is to strengthen initial quarantine responses at high-risk facilities and reduce the scale of damage.

Yoon Tae-ho, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) quarantine team, announced at a regular briefing on the 30th, "Starting today, three 'Emergency On-site Response Teams' will be formed and operated within the CDSCH."

The Emergency On-site Response Teams will visit sites jointly with the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) on-site response teams when patients occur or cluster infections are confirmed in nursing hospitals or nursing facilities, supporting initial response efforts. They will assess whether confirmed patients should be transferred to other hospitals, how to manage those who had close contact, and whether it is possible to treat and manage patients with existing personnel, taking necessary measures accordingly.

Yoon said, "Nursing hospitals and facilities, which have many elderly people and are vulnerable to infection, require rapid intervention and measures at an early stage," adding, "The central government will intervene to provide necessary resources to local governments and the relevant hospitals."

According to quarantine authorities, there are currently 17 nursing hospitals under special quarantine management such as cohort isolation due to recent cluster infections: 5 in the metropolitan area and 12 outside the metropolitan area.

Meanwhile, the government has decided to deploy about 30 medical staff to Miso-deul Nursing Hospital in Guro-gu, Seoul, where a recent cluster infection occurred, to support patient treatment.

According to the CDSCH, a total of 180 people have been confirmed with COVID-19 related to this hospital so far. Among them, 143 have been transferred to other hospitals, leaving 37 remaining. Among the non-confirmed individuals, 246 were transferred, leaving 92 remaining.

Yoon stated, "We plan to transfer all 37 confirmed patients remaining in this hospital," and "The 92 non-confirmed patients will continue to be managed at the hospital, with 34 medical personnel to be supported for this purpose."

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