Severe Bed Occupancy Rate in the Capital Area Exceeds 75%... Concerns Over Critical Patient Management

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] The utilization rate of COVID-19 intensive care unit (ICU) beds in the Seoul metropolitan area is rising, raising concerns about the management of critically ill patients.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) of the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 14th, as of 5 p.m. the previous day, the utilization rate of dedicated severe patient beds in Seoul was 76.2%. Out of 345 secured beds, 263 were in use. In Incheon, the utilization rate of severe beds also approached 76%. According to Incheon City, 60 out of 79 dedicated severe patient treatment beds were in use that day, recording a utilization rate of 75.9%.

The government, which began phased daily recovery measures on the 1st, announced that if the situation worsens, it would temporarily suspend the daily recovery promotion by activating an emergency plan (circuit breaker). One example of the activation criteria for the emergency plan is a '75% or higher ICU bed utilization rate.' Detailed guidelines on the emergency plan and quarantine indicators are scheduled to be announced on the 16th.

The situation in Gyeonggi Province is not much different. As of 5 p.m. the previous day, 189 out of 263 severe patient beds in Gyeonggi were in use, recording a utilization rate of 71.9%. The situation outside the metropolitan area is somewhat better. Nationwide (including the metropolitan area), the utilization rate of severe beds was 59.6% (671 out of 1,125 beds), slightly below 60%.

On that day, 2,401 new locally transmitted confirmed cases were reported, with 80% coming from the metropolitan area (Seoul 969, Gyeonggi 797, Incheon 155), indicating that the recent COVID-19 outbreak is spreading mainly in the metropolitan area. Considering this situation, there was speculation about the possibility of activating the emergency plan only in the metropolitan area, but Son Young-rae, head of the social strategy division at the CDSCH, stated in a briefing on the 11th, "There is no intention to partially implement the emergency plan."

The number of critically ill patients has also recently shown a sharp increase. The number of critically ill patients, which had remained in the 300s for more than two months since September 1, recorded 411 on the 6th and has stayed in the 400s for nine consecutive days. After reaching a record high of 460 on the 10th, the numbers increased daily to 473 on the 11th, 475 on the 12th, and 485 on the 13th. On the 14th, the number was 483, temporarily halting the upward trend but maintaining the second-highest level ever. The government believes that the current medical system can stably respond to up to 500 critically ill patients, but only 17 patients remain before reaching that 500-patient threshold.

Critically ill patients are considered the most important quarantine indicator in the phased daily recovery quarantine system. The government has shifted asymptomatic and mild patients to home treatment under phased daily recovery and reorganized the medical system to focus on critically ill patients. In this context, a rapid increase in critically ill patients inevitably increases the burden on medical response. The government is promoting a plan to manage metropolitan and non-metropolitan beds collectively, as seen in cases where patients from the metropolitan area were assigned to the Chungcheong region. Considering that more patients than the number of critically ill patients are hospitalized in severe beds, the government currently judges that it can respond to the increase in critically ill patients.

As the number of critically ill patients rises, the number of deaths is also increasing. COVID-19 deaths have recorded double digits for 13 consecutive days since the 2nd (16 deaths). The previous day's tally recorded 32 deaths, the highest since the fourth wave began in early July. On the 12th, the government issued an administrative order to secure semi-critical patient beds (patients whose condition has improved from severe or who have a high possibility of worsening to severe) at seven general hospitals with more than 700 beds in the metropolitan area in preparation for a shortage of metropolitan beds. Earlier, on the 5th, an administrative order was issued to additionally secure 402 semi-critical beds and 692 moderate-severity beds in the metropolitan area.

Currently, the utilization rate of semi-critical patient beds is 59.8% (272 out of 455 beds), and the metropolitan area utilization rate is 71.3% (197 out of 276 beds). Securing semi-critical patient beds allows for more efficient management of ICU beds. However, it takes up to four weeks for actual bed expansion to occur following an administrative order. As the number of critically ill patients is rapidly increasing, swift action is needed to secure additional beds. In an interview on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' on the 10th, Son said, "The key is how steeply the number of critically ill patients and deaths increases, and this week and next week are important."

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