A group of emergency medical professionals at the agency’s Central 119 Emergency Situation Management Center provide the consultation service 24 hours a day. (image: Jeonnam Fire Service)
SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — The National Fire Agency announced on Thursday that the number of Korean nationals abroad who used the agency’s 119 emergency medical consultation service totaled 1,287 cases in the first half of this year, up 18.8 percent from 1,083 cases one year ago.
The 119 emergency medical consultation service is provided to Korean nationals abroad when they become ill or are injured while overseas.
A group of emergency medical professionals at the agency’s Central 119 Emergency Situation Management Center provide the consultation service 24 hours a day.
The number of requests for consultation from Koreans in foreign lands, including outbound travelers and students studying overseas, fell by 28.3 percent year on year due to the spread of the coronavirus.
However, the number of such requests from those at sea, including seafarers of oceangoing vessels, jumped by 47.1 percent year on year, leading to an increase in the aggregate total.
By type of consultation, the number of medical consultations accounted for the highest share at 73.8 percent of the total (950 cases), followed by instruction on drug use at 8.5 percent (109 cases) and emergency treatment at 6.4 percent (83 cases).
By subject of consultation, medical emergencies ranked first at 38.5 percent (496 cases), followed by internal medicine at 21.1 percent (272 cases) and orthopedics at 11 percent (141 cases).
Internal medicine accounted for the largest share of the consultations for those in foreign lands, while medical emergencies took up the largest share in the consultations for those at sea.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
