Government Provides Noise-Reducing Negative Pressure Equipment to Public Nursing Hospitals and Facilities (Comprehensive)

Utilization of Special Grants for Local Governments

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] The government will utilize special grants for local governments to support the installation of negative pressure equipment suitable for public nursing hospitals and facilities. For school quarantine, symptomatic individuals during midterms and the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) will be separated into different exam rooms to take the tests.

On the 7th, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters announced that it discussed plans to support ventilation and negative pressure facilities in infection-vulnerable facilities, the operation status of local government medical consultative bodies, and school quarantine management measures in preparation for a resurgence of COVID-19.

First, to prevent group infections in infection-vulnerable facilities, the government plans to support the installation of negative pressure facilities by utilizing the remaining balance of special grants allocated to local governments. A demand survey focused on local government public nursing facilities showed that 53 facilities applied.

Park Hyang, head of the quarantine general team at the Central Accident Response Headquarters, explained, "The negative pressure equipment currently used in hospital rooms has been very noisy and inconvenient to use, but the equipment we plan to install now has significantly reduced noise and is designed to be suitable for the facilities." He added, "Each unit costs about 7 million KRW, and approximately 329 units are expected to be installed."

The guideline for ventilation facilities in nursing hospitals, which is currently under research, will be completed next month, and a guideline will be prepared along with securing the related budget.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters also announced plans to strengthen school quarantine management on the same day. Although the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases is not decreasing, the proportion of infections among those aged 19 and under is relatively high compared to all age groups. As of midnight that day, the incidence rate per 100,000 population was highest among ages 0-9 at 73,389 cases, followed by ages 10-19 at 67,702 cases. A winter resurgence accompanied by an influenza epidemic is also predicted.

Cho Kyu-hong, first deputy head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (Minister of Health and Welfare), said, "We will be thorough in managing school quarantine," adding, "During midterms and the November CSAT, students with symptoms will be separated into different exam rooms to minimize the spread of infection." He also stated that 60,000 dedicated quarantine personnel will be deployed in schools to prevent infections among children and teenagers, who have a high incidence of COVID-19.

Strict management will also be applied to experiential learning such as school trips and various exams. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, among 4,782 schools planning school trips in the second semester, about 59.05% plan to conduct trips in October, and 10.18% in November. The government will support schools to make prompt decisions on contract changes and schedule adjustments if the COVID-19 situation worsens.

Regarding mask-wearing during outdoor activities such as autumn sports days and experiential learning, Park said, "We have found that there are many differences on-site in how masks are worn outdoors and indoors at schools and by students, and how masks are worn when groups go on experiential trips." He added, "We will work with the Ministry of Education to quickly understand how these activities are being conducted and strive to establish detailed guidelines together with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters."