Average 500 Hospitals and Clinics, Over 1,300 Pharmacies Secured Daily During Chuseok Holiday
Emergency Medical Teams Operate at 25 District Health Centers and 7 Municipal Hospitals During Chuseok
7.1 Billion KRW Emergency Support for Emergency Medical Centers... Securing Emergency Medical Staff
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is activating an emergency medical treatment plan during the Chuseok holiday period. The number of hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies open will be expanded to over 1,800, and 'emergency medical teams' will be formed at 25 public health centers and 7 municipal hospitals. Additionally, 7 billion KRW in emergency funds will be urgently injected to strengthen emergency medical response.
On the 2nd, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that from the 14th to the 18th, during the Chuseok holiday, it will implement this emergency medical treatment plan to reinforce the emergency medical system. The city explained, "Since most medical institutions tend to see a sharp increase in emergency room visits during the holiday period, and difficulties are expected due to medical service gaps, the Chuseok holiday will be designated as an emergency medical treatment period with an emergency duty system maintained."
On the afternoon of the 2nd, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited Anam Hospital at Korea University in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, to inspect the emergency medical system and toured the Regional Emergency Medical Center. [Photo by Seoul City]
First, to make it easier for patients with mild symptoms to access medical services during the holiday, the number of hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies open will be significantly increased. From the 14th to the 18th, over five days, 500 hospitals and clinics and about 1,300 pharmacies will be designated and operated daily, totaling approximately 1,800 places open per day. This is about 1.5 times the number of hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies open during this year's Lunar New Year holiday.
At 25 district public health centers and 7 municipal hospitals, 'emergency medical teams' for patients with mild symptoms will be operated. The health centers will provide internal medicine and family medicine services for more than three days during the holiday period, and all will operate essential services on the 17th, Chuseok day. The municipal hospitals will also operate outpatient clinics, with each of the 7 municipal hospitals providing outpatient services in different medical specialties from the 16th to the 18th.
An emergency fund of 7.1 billion KRW will also be injected to strengthen emergency medical response capacity. This is to support emergency room dedicated physician allowances, surgeries for patients linked from the emergency room, and intensive care unit operations to reinforce behind-the-scenes medical care. 1.12 billion KRW and 2.88 billion KRW will be allocated to 7 regional emergency medical centers and 24 local emergency medical centers, respectively. 3.1 billion KRW will be invested for behind-the-scenes medical care operating expenses.
Emergency medical institutions and general hospital emergency rooms in Seoul will operate 24 hours a day during the Chuseok holiday. Emergency medical institutions include ▲31 regional and local emergency medical centers such as Seoul National University Hospital ▲18 local emergency medical institutions such as Seoul Metropolitan Seonam Hospital ▲and 20 hospitals operating emergency rooms, totaling 69 locations.
In line with this, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited Korea University Anam Hospital in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, in the afternoon to directly inspect the emergency medical system and its operation status. At the site, Mayor Oh said, "The fatigue accumulation among emergency room medical staff is severe, so we are making every effort to prepare various measures such as dispersing patients with mild symptoms and normal operation of neighborhood hospitals and clinics." He added, "To support emergency medical care during the Chuseok holiday, we are first injecting 7.1 billion KRW of Seoul city funds and are also preparing emergency response plans using disaster management funds with the government." He further stated, "Seoul will do its best to support emergency medical care by mobilizing available resources, so we ask medical sites to help ensure there are no service gaps during the holiday period."
On the afternoon of the 2nd, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited Anam Hospital of Korea University in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, to meet with hospital officials and inspect the emergency medical system. [Photo by Seoul City]
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