Professor Lee Jaegap: "The Field Is Already Hell... Infections Among Medical Staff and Patients Are Rapidly Increasing"

"To Ease Social Distancing, Must Demonstrate Ability to Manage Patients"

Seoul citizens are lining up and waiting to get tested at a temporary COVID-19 screening clinic. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] As the number of new COVID-19 cases continues to exceed 90,000 daily, the government is set to announce new quarantine guidelines on the 18th. Regarding this, Lee Jae-gap, Associate Professor of Infectious Diseases at Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, urged a cautious decision on easing restrictions, saying, "The situation on the ground is already hell."

In a post on his Facebook on the 15th, Professor Lee emphasized, "If you plan to ease social distancing, you must demonstrate that managing the increasing number of patients is possible."

He explained, "In nursing homes, long-term care hospitals, psychiatric medical institutions, and acute care hospitals alike, infections among staff and patients are rapidly increasing," adding, "If the number of confirmed cases grows larger, medical institutions will have to start reducing services."

He further urged, "I hope discussions about easing social distancing will take place only after the peak of confirmed cases has passed."

Professor Lee lamented, "Due to the suffering of small business owners and self-employed individuals, it is difficult to speak further about social distancing," and added, "It seems the government is unlikely to listen."

He continued, "I will quietly live while helping the patients I am responsible for, supporting nursing homes and long-term care hospitals struggling with cluster outbreaks, and making efforts to protect the hospital where I work."

Professor Lee has repeatedly expressed concerns about the possibility of easing quarantine guidelines recently. On the 14th, he wrote on Facebook, "Due to the inability to manage the increasing number of confirmed cases, isolation and notification releases are not being properly conducted, and there is no clear guidance on how to handle general management groups whose conditions have worsened," criticizing, "Please do not escalate the crisis yourselves."

On the afternoon of the 15th, self-employed business owners are having a head-shaving ceremony at the 'COVID-19 Damage Actual Compensation Urging and Government Condemnation Rally' held at Gwanghwamun Open Plaza in Seoul. / Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, the quarantine authorities are expected to announce adjusted quarantine guidelines on the 18th. Although the number of COVID-19 cases is explosively increasing due to the spread of the Omicron variant, demands to ease social distancing guidelines, especially from self-employed individuals and small business owners, are growing, deepening the government's dilemma.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on the 17th, the number of new confirmed cases was 93,135, marking the second consecutive day above 90,000 following the previous day's 90,443.

The number of critically ill patients increased by 76 to 389 compared to the previous day. The number of critically ill patients had remained in the 200s until the end of last month but rose to the 300s after recording 306 on the 14th.

Meanwhile, on the 15th, 14 self-employed groups, including the Korea Foodservice Industry Association, held a large-scale rally in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, demanding the withdrawal of quarantine guidelines.

On that day, they continued protests calling for the removal of operating hour restrictions and government compensation for losses. They also claimed that if these demands are not met, they would begin '24-hour operations' centered on their members starting from the 21st.

Regarding this, Oh Ho-seok, co-representative of the COVID-19 Affected Self-Employed General Federation (Coja General), said, "We came out to the streets for our right to survive. Self-employed people are now being treated like criminals," raising his voice, "We need to start over, but we have nothing, and we cannot sustain our livelihoods with the meager compensation. We will fight to the end until we receive 100% compensation."

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