[Agyeong Person of the Year] Vaccine Named Devotion... 'Corona Medical Staff'

Great Heroes Who Risked Their Lives Amid the Plague to Protect the People

Medical staff are removing frost from a face shield at the temporary screening clinic near Sogang University Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Medical staff are encouraging each other at the temporary screening clinic at Seoul Station. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] Protective suits covering the entire body, hats, double gloves and overshoes, health masks, and protective goggles. It takes about 10 minutes to put on all the equipment weighing 3 kg. In the summer, when daytime temperatures exceed 35 degrees Celsius, breathing becomes difficult, and in the winter, they battle freezing cold and fogged-up vision, enduring these conditions throughout the year...

The Person of the Year selected by Asia Economy is the 'COVID-19 medical staff.' Despite the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic completely changing our daily lives and bringing anxiety and despair, the COVID-19 medical staff endured the toughest and most challenging conditions on the frontlines against the infectious disease throughout 2020.

Worldwide, the cumulative number of confirmed cases has surpassed 80 million (as of the 30th, 80,155,187 cases), and deaths have reached 1,771,128. However, Korea has relatively minimized the scale of damage (as of the 30th, cumulative confirmed cases 59,773 and deaths 879) thanks to the dedication of these medical workers. Despite continuous heavy workloads causing many to collapse from exhaustion and the constant risk of infection, the medical staff restrained themselves from drinking water or beverages even to reduce bathroom breaks, protecting their patients.

During the first major domestic COVID-19 outbreak centered in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions in February and March, when news of a shortage of medical personnel spread, 500 medical staff from across the country volunteered within three days. Even during the third wave at the end of the year, over 2,000 doctors and nurses applied to lend their support, with many rushing to places in crisis.

Amidst the flood of encouragement and titles such as 'true heroes' and 'COVID warriors' directed at the COVID-19 medical staff, they continue to fight battles unseen today as well.

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