[This Person] Park Seongsu, Songpa District Mayor, Presents Case on Improving Congestion at Selective Testing Sites

On the 27th, during the video-held 'Emergency District Mayors' Meeting on COVID-19,' an excellent case presentation of Songpa-gu's 'Temporary Screening Clinic Queue Management System' was made.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] On the 27th, Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa District Office, received applause for presenting Songpa District's improvement plan for congestion at temporary screening clinics as a best practice during the 'Emergency Meeting of District Mayors on COVID-19' held via video conference.

This meeting was organized by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to review the on-site situation facing difficulties in responding to COVID-19 amid the extension of social distancing level 4 for two weeks in the metropolitan area combined with a heatwave, and to seek effective measures.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and the mayors of 25 autonomous districts participated via video.

In particular, Songpa District's 'Temporary Screening Clinic Queue Waiting Guidance System' was introduced as a best practice at this meeting.

Mayor Park Seong-su explained the background of the system's introduction through the case presentation: "Due to the increase in the number of tests caused by the spread of COVID-19 under the heatwave with temperatures exceeding 34°C daily, waiting times have lengthened in the heat, so we started operating a real-time queue waiting guidance system for residents' convenience."

The queue waiting guidance system allows testers to enter their phone numbers on a tablet to register a waiting number, and they are automatically called in order via KakaoTalk or text messages. This system enables individuals to receive guidance and get tested without waiting on-site.

Mayor Park added, "This system helps disperse the number of people waiting, reduces waiting times in the heatwave, and helps prevent the spread of infection during waiting. Above all, by using an existing developed app, it can be used at a low cost without additional construction expenses."

He also stated, "We are providing COVID-19 test results promptly on the same day," adding, "This helps residents return to their daily lives quickly without restrictions on commuting to work or school."

Additionally, since the 19th, the district has been implementing various improvement measures to enhance user convenience, such as placing umbrellas, creating heatwave waiting shelters, and installing cooling facilities at two temporary screening clinics (Munjeong Urban Development Zone Plaza, Olympic Park Peace Gate) and the Songpa District Health Center screening clinic.

Mayor Park Seong-su stated, "Going forward, Songpa District will continue to lead various projects for early detection of confirmed cases and alleviation of quarantine anxiety, striving to reduce the fatigue of residents struggling with COVID-19 and to protect their safety."