Special Education and Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd Grade Elementary Teachers 2nd Quarter Vaccination

Vaccination for Residents Aged 65 and Over and Staff at Nursing Hospitals and Facilities in Gangnam-gu Scheduled This Month

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] The third wave of COVID-19, which began in earnest last November, has now entered its fifth month.

As of midnight on the 16th, the number of new confirmed cases in South Korea was 363, marking the second consecutive day with cases in the 300s, while the number of vaccinated individuals surpassed 600,000.

According to the government's second-quarter vaccination plan announced on the 15th, COVID-19 vaccinations will begin in April for the elderly aged 65 and over, starting with those aged 75 and above.

Vaccinations for special education teachers, kindergarten teachers, and first- and second-grade elementary school teachers will also be conducted in the second quarter.

Prior to this, vaccinations will be administered this month to residents aged 65 and over and workers in nursing hospitals and facilities. Gangnam-gu collected vaccination consent from nursing hospitals, facilities, high-risk medical institutions, and infectious disease-dedicated hospital staff in the district by the 19th.

Additionally, Gangnam-gu is conducting on-site inspections of vaccines stored within 25 nursing hospitals and high-risk medical institutions to ensure safe vaccinations.

For those with mobility difficulties, a specialized team composed of doctors and nurses from the Gangnam-gu Public Health Center is conducting home visits to administer vaccinations.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is administered twice with a 10-week interval, while the Pfizer vaccine is given twice with a 3-week interval.

Separately, Gangnam-gu has formed a dedicated team of eight public officials and medical staff to respond swiftly to adverse reactions and to ensure immediate compensation claims in case of any damage.

Fortunately, no one in the district has reported vaccine side effects so far. Mild symptoms such as headaches or nausea may occur after vaccination but typically disappear within a day or two.

Notably, 400 first responders working on the front lines of COVID-19, including Gangnam-gu Public Health Center staff, epidemiological investigators, and Gangnam Fire Station ambulance transport personnel, have been vaccinated with no significant adverse reactions.

Gangnam-gu aims to vaccinate 380,000 people, which is 70% of the total population of 538,536 (as of January 2021), by the end of November.

To facilitate smooth free vaccinations, two vaccination centers are planned to be established within the district (Ilwon Eco Center at Ilwon-dong 4-12 and Gangnam Tourism Information Center at Apgujeong-ro 161).

Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that 100 million vaccine doses will be administered within the next 10 days. President Biden pledged to achieve 100 million vaccinations within his first 100 days in office, which means this goal will be met in about 60 days.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 27.5% of adults aged 18 and over in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine dose.

Although concerns about side effects such as blood clots have been raised worldwide regarding vaccines, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasizes that there is no established causal relationship between vaccines and blood clot formation and that there is no reason to halt vaccine use.

The government has also provisionally concluded that there is no causal link between vaccination and death in 14 out of 16 reported deaths following COVID-19 vaccination. Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun appealed for public trust and participation in the vaccination effort.

Health authorities warn that if confirmed cases surge mainly in the metropolitan area, vaccination efforts could be disrupted. Despite many difficulties so far, residents are urged to remember that even a small lapse in vigilance can lead to a large outbreak, and to strictly follow preventive measures such as wearing masks and social distancing.

Now, let me explain the current COVID-19 status and key policies in Gangnam-gu.

Here is the status of confirmed cases in Gangnam-gu. On this day, five new cases numbered 1395 to 1399 were reported. Cases 1395 to 1398 are family members of previously confirmed Gangnam-gu residents, while case 1399 tested positive after contact with a confirmed case from another region. Case 1394 was confirmed with fever symptoms but the infection route is unknown and is under epidemiological investigation.

As of this day, Gangnam-gu is managing 993 self-quarantined individuals, including 602 who entered from overseas and 391 domestic contacts.

The cumulative number of tests conducted at Gangnam-gu Public Health Center’s screening clinics and temporary screening sites is 251,517. Of the 2,071 tests conducted the previous day, 65 were from overseas entrants and 2,006 from domestic residents.

Seoul City has decided to strengthen on-site inspections of self-quarantined individuals entering the country to block the inflow of variant viruses from abroad. In this regard, Gangnam-gu considers thorough management of overseas entrants and self-quarantined individuals essential to prevent community spread and has been making every effort since the early stages of the outbreak by visiting self-quarantine homes jointly with the police to prevent unauthorized departures. Of the 104 individuals who have left quarantine locations so far, 76 have been reported to the police for violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. Gangnam-gu promises to continue strict management to minimize community infections.

Regarding recent cluster infections in foreign worker facilities, Gangnam-gu is proactively providing guidance for free testing and treatment to 10,000 foreign residents in the district.

Recently, infections have been continuously occurring in everyday settings such as schools, workplaces, nursing facilities, and daycare centers, while spring outings are increasing. In fact, last week, the national infection reproduction number was 1.07, up from 0.94 the previous week. The average daily new locally transmitted cases over the past week (March 7?13) was 428.3, an increase of 56.6 cases compared to the previous week (371.7). Confirmed cases among those aged 60 and over also rose by 31 to an average of 113.9 per day compared to the previous week.

The government has extended current social distancing and the ban on private gatherings of five or more people for two weeks until the 28th. Wearing masks properly significantly reduces the risk of cluster infections.

Residents are reminded that this is a serious emergency situation and are urged once again to strictly adhere to daily preventive measures for the safety of themselves and others.

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