The Nation's First Infectious Disease Specialized Hospital Breaks Ground in the First Half of the Year... Completion Scheduled for October 2026

In the first half of this year, the country's first infectious disease specialized hospital will be constructed on the site of Chosun University Hospital in Gwangju.

On the 11th, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency announced that it will begin construction of the first regional infectious disease specialized hospital within Chosun University Hospital in Gwangju Metropolitan City (Honam region), with a total project cost of 78.1 billion KRW (58.2 billion KRW from the national government and 19.9 billion KRW borne by the hospital).

Source: Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency

원본보기 아이콘

The hospital will have a total floor area of 13,202㎡ (7 floors above ground and 2 floors underground) and a total of 98 beds (including 36 negative pressure beds), and is scheduled to be completed in October 2026.

The infectious disease specialized hospital is a national project promoted to respond swiftly to national public health crises such as the outbreak of new infectious diseases. It will focus on intensive care for critically ill patients during new infectious disease crises and serve as a control tower for infectious disease medical response within the region.

Since 2017, the following hospitals have been sequentially designated: Chosun University Hospital in the Honam region, Soonchunhyang University Cheonan Hospital in the Chungcheong region, Yangsan Busan National University Hospital in the Gyeongnam region, Chilgok Kyungpook National University Hospital in the Gyeongbuk region, and Bundang Seoul National University Hospital in the metropolitan area.

To prevent infectious disease transmission, this hospital will be constructed as an independent building and will include facilities for rapid diagnosis of infectious diseases such as a computed tomography (CT) scanning room, negative pressure operating rooms and wards, as well as education and training rooms.

It will also house a biosafety laboratory capable of testing and experimenting on highly fatal new infectious disease viruses.

The Disease Control and Prevention Agency plans to sequentially build infectious disease specialized hospitals in the remaining regions, starting with the Honam region.

Jiyoungmi, Director of the Disease Control and Prevention Agency, stated, "Based on the experience of promoting the Honam region infectious disease specialized hospital, we will proceed smoothly with the establishment of the other four regional infectious disease specialized hospitals," adding, "We plan to add two new regions beyond the existing five to build a stable infectious disease response infrastructure capable of handling one million new infectious disease patients per day."

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.