SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — The government has taken a step further towards establishing a rapid COVID-19 treatment system in the pandemic era, with case numbers continuing to rise for the time being despite a successful vaccination drive, and with front-line health-care workers said to be on the brink of burnout.
The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDC HQ) announced on Wednesday that it had established a 24-hour hotline for COVID-19 patients being treated at home in a move to quickly transfer them to hospitals in emergency situations.
The 24-hour hotline system will be established in 119 (emergency phone number in South Korea) general situation rooms located in each city and province.
The management team for home-treatment patients will be responsible for the emergency situation coordination.
In such emergency cases, special ambulances — vehicles dedicated to preventing the secondary spread of infectious diseases — will be dispatched.
Most of these ambulances are “wrapped” in impermeable material – a kind of protective covering — to prevent the spread of highly infectious diseases.
There are 1,581 ambulances nationwide for general purposes of which 295 are classified as emergency vehicles dedicated to transferring infectious diseases patients, according to the CDC HQ.
Image Credit: Yonhap / Jeonnam Fire Service / photonews@koreabizwire.com
