Gumi-si, Operation of Emergency Quarantine System for Summer Infectious Diseases

Rapid Response Including Cluster Outbreak Monitoring and Epidemiological Investigation Team Formation

Gumi City in Gyeongbuk Province is operating an emergency quarantine system until September due to the possibility of outbreaks of waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases and imported infectious diseases caused by rising summer temperatures, increased outdoor activities, and overseas travel.

Waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases are infections mainly causing gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, and vomiting due to the consumption of food or water contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms. These include second-class infectious diseases such as cholera, typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, bacterial dysentery, and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli infection, as well as fourth-class infectious diseases like intestinal infections.

Intestinal infections are caused by Salmonella, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Campylobacter, and other bacteria.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported that outbreaks of waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases occur relatively more frequently in the summer season compared to other periods. Although outbreaks decreased over the past three years due to COVID-19-related quarantine measures, they have returned to pre-COVID-19 levels in 2023.

Additionally, six infectious diseases requiring special caution during overseas travel have been selected, including mosquito-borne infectious diseases (dengue fever, Zika virus infection, chikungunya fever, malaria), respiratory infectious diseases (measles), and waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases (cholera). The incidence of these six diseases has increased tenfold compared to the same period last year. (KDCA press release, April 28, 2023)

Accordingly, the city is strengthening infectious disease occurrence monitoring through a disease monitoring network (127 sites) including schools, hospitals and clinics, workplaces, daycare centers, and postpartum care centers, and is operating an emergency quarantine system with Gyeongbuk Province until September to respond to infectious diseases through epidemiological investigations and other measures.

Choi Hyun-joo, director of the Gumi Public Health Center, urged, “If two or more people who have eaten the same food at the same place show symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting, please report immediately to the public health center,” and added, “Citizens should follow the seven basic prevention rules for waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases and the prevention guidelines for imported infectious diseases in their daily lives.”

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