Expansion of Training Targets to Include Day and Night Care Centers and Elderly Nursing Group Homes After First Training Session
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 20th that, as cluster infections have been continuously occurring in nursing facilities recently, infection control experts will provide 'customized infection control' support through 'interactive online consulting' for 221 elderly nursing facilities for the first time.
At the beginning of January, the city held an advisory meeting with infection control experts to strengthen infection control capabilities and conducted preliminary meetings with nursing facility workers to gather opinions for the prevention of novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) cluster infections and efficient infection management in elderly nursing facilities.
In elderly nursing facilities, there is vulnerability in infection control due to a lack of awareness and professional personnel, raising the need to strengthen infection control capabilities through customized education, consultation, and systematic support for nursing facilities to prevent COVID-19.
During the preliminary meetings with nursing facility workers, the city listened to and discussed practical needs and suggestions from the field, such as COVID-19 response guidelines for nursing facilities and inquiries about the effectiveness and side effects of environmental disinfection, and actively reflected these in the content of the upcoming consulting and education.
Accordingly, the city is promoting 'infection control online consulting' for infection control officers at 221 elderly nursing facilities nationwide for the first time, aiming to further strengthen infection control capabilities through facility-specific customized education via interactive communication.
Furthermore, after conducting the first round of education and consulting for elderly nursing facilities, the city plans to gradually expand education to vulnerable groups such as elderly group homes, day and night care centers, and care workers. Educational videos will also be produced and distributed to help nursing facility workers easily understand the content.
In particular, when cluster infections occur in nursing facilities, the 'Seoul Immediate Response Team' and private infection control experts will jointly support 'on-site consulting' to check the facility structure, separate movement paths, and redistribute contacts to manage on-site quarantine.
The main contents of the on-site consulting include identifying nursing facility personnel and estimating additional required staff, providing on-site infection control education for workers, and suggesting improvement plans for vulnerabilities in nursing facilities.
Park Yu-mi, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Citizen Health Bureau, said, "To prevent cluster infections of COVID-19 in nursing facilities, we are promoting infection control online education and consulting for nursing facilities for the first time," and added, "Seoul will continue to strengthen infection control capabilities tailored to the characteristics of vulnerable facilities, proactively improve weaknesses, and do its best to protect citizens' health."
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