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It wasn’t having a ogle factual for South Korea in mid-February. The nation had the arena’s second absolute best determination of coronavirus instances after China, owing to acluster of infectionsthat arose from theShincheonji Churchwithin the city of Daegu, some 150 miles south of the capital Seoul.
But attributable to early preparations, and an out of this world public health response basically basically based round intensive trying out and tech-powered contact tracing, the nation’s tally of infections has been kept to dazzling 10,765, about half straight away related to Shincheonji. More spectacular soundless, no predominant lockdown or restrictions on stream had been imposed, keep a pair of scattered curfews.
On Apr. 15, some 29 million folks changed into as a lot asvote in parliamentary elections—yet no known infections arose, attributable to strict social distancing on the polls. On Wednesday, South Korea had zero native infections for the first time since the outbreak became first recorded 72 days previously (though four original instances had been imported.) “This is the energy of South Korea and its folks,” President Moon Jae-in acknowledged on asserting the news.
South Korea’s health and welfare minister Park Neung-hoo defined to TIME exactly how his nation engineered such an extraordinary turnaround. The next written solutions were translated from Korean and had been edited for dimension and clarity.
What became your reaction while you occur to first heard relating to the virus? I imagine you prefer to win most of those signals that flip out to be nothing?
The bitter reminiscence of MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) locations me on edge at any time when a fresh virus an infection is reported, so we totally verify up on any original viral outbreaks. [South Korea had the second-largest number of MERS cases after Saudi Arabia and its public health response was highly criticized.] So we tried to buy as essential knowledge as doubtless, and I belief that rapidly, early action ought to be taken.
What were the most valuable insurance policies in opposition to containing COVID-19?
As COVID-19 displays very unfamiliar parts, we wished to be artistic and revolutionary, as effectively as the usage of feeble programs to fight the virus. As an illustration, drive-through screening clinics, an ICT [information and communications technology] app called Particular Immigration Scheme [provided to new airport arrivals], andLife Remedy Centersfor patients with light indicators were revolutionary. If we had didn’t separate them and tried to place all original patients in hospitals, our overloaded healthcare machine also can beget collapsed.
As well, if we had delayed increasing take a look at kits by a month, with out prior and proactive consultation and cooperation with the private sector, our contemporary machine basically basically based round rapidly, mass trying out couldn’t had been established.
How manufacture prompt take a look at outcomes relief thorough contact tracing?
COVID-19 would possibly perhaps be very contagious within the early stage of an infection and even when the symptom is light, and it spreads rapidly. Therefore, it is some distance vital that thecontaminated patient is identified and isolatedas snappy as doubtless in containing the spread of the virus. For this, a transient take a look at is required.
How valuable has know-how proved for contact tracing?
ICT plays a decisive role in accurately identifying folks and hasty locating their contacts. As an illustration, tracing them through bank card usage, CCTV, cell phone space tracing, and loads of others helps us to have a examine a patient’s proceed time, route and space snappy, and would possibly seemingly seemingly seemingly furthermore relief to title shut contacts of the patient.The quicker we receive the contacts, the higher we’re ready to stem additional spread of the virus.
Why did you to make a resolution to produce drive-through trying out so in vogue?
Power-through screening clinics are essential quicker and safer than usual screening clinics. Examination, temperature verify, and specimen sequence are done while the driver is soundless sitting within the automotive. Ragged specimen sequence also can beget half an hour in comparison with easiest ten minutes in total for drive-through. And the chance of unfavorable an infection between the scientific mavens and company is vastly decreased.
What would possibly seemingly seemingly seemingly be your advice for other international locations searching for to own COVID-19?
Since COVID-19 spreads very rapidly, an early diagnostic take a look at is vital. About 80% of COVID-19 patients beget light indicators, and easiest 10% beget excessive indicators. So the scientific machine wants to answer accordingly. In other phrases, atmosphere friendly allocation of shrimp scientific resources is awfully valuable.
Next, the superb leverage we now beget for controlling COVID-19 is folks’s belief within the thunder. Deep belief no longer easiest minimizes public dismay, nonetheless is vital in inducing the participation and cooperation of the oldsters in enforcing the potent vaccine that is social distancing.
For this, it is some distance awfully valuable to give relevant knowledge to the oldsters within the most clear doubtless manner. As well, it is some distance furthermore valuable to beget tender inter-ministerial and central-to-native governmental conversation.
How did you resist the flee to impose extra draconian containment measures handle in China or other international locations?
We never regarded as acorpulent lockdown as part of our policy responseto COVID-19. Although there became an explosive original outbreak in a obvious situation, we had self assurance that we’re going to have the selection to also uncover contacts and isolate them efficiently.
South Korea is a democracy which respects and ensures the actual person freedom of the oldsters as essential as doubtless, so we relied on folks’s voluntary cooperation in step with their belief in public anti-epidemic authorities.
As such, as a replace of bodily lockdown, we fought the virus through an epidemiological device comparable to wide diagnostic trying out and isolation of contacts, while encouraging folks’s voluntary cooperation for social distancing. We believed this became extra efficient than forcible measures and certainly it paid off.
How manufacture you weigh public health concerns versus restarting the economic system?
Discovering a mid-level betweeneconomic activities and containing a virusoutbreak is a soft balancing act. Given the character of COVID-19, this would seemingly seemingly furthermore be next to no longer doubtless to wipe it out with out the convey of a vaccine.
The bottom line is whether or no longer we’re ready to support COVID-19 instances within our scientific machine’s capacity to treat patients. In Korea, we situation strict standards and in most cases evaluation how patient numbers match our scientific capacity, permitting us stability the two pressing wants [of public health and economy.]
Quit you are feeling public strain to stay containment measures and launch up?
Just appropriate handle epidemic prevention is an part of our existence, so are socioeconomic activities. We want economic activities to produce obvious that a sustainable anti-epidemic response. I ogle the want and in point of fact feel the strain for normalization of economic activities.
Anti-epidemic authorities are making an ongoing assessment of the contemporary progress and are exploring ways to manufacture each minimal chance of spread of an infection and standard existence and economic activities. As an illustration, from the stay of March till mid-April, reinforced social distancing became enforced. From Apr. 20 to Might perhaps perhaps perhaps 5, some public companies are reopening, step by step easing the energy of social distancing.
We’re going to continue to regulate the extent of social distancing in consideration of additional progress, and we’re ready to implement a “social distancing in traditional existence,” below which our traditional existence and virus containment can each be performed in stability with each other.
—With reporting and translation by Stephen Kim/Seoul
Please send programs, leads, and stories from the frontlines to virus@time.com.
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