Jun Ji-hye, a reporter at the finance desk of The Korea Times, focuses primarily on economic policy and government agencies, mainly covering the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Ministry of Budget and Planning, the National Tax Service and the Korea Customs Service. She previously covered financial authorities, including the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service, and earlier worked on the political, city and business desks, reporting on a wide range of issues.
Nursing homes report increasing COVID-19 deaths amid shortage of sickbeds
A geriatric hospital employee in Seoul's Guro District pushes a wheelchair, Wednesday, wearing a protective body suit. The hospital said inpatients and medical staff there undergo COVID-19 testing every other day after multiple infections occurred there. / Yonhap
By Jun Ji-hye
By Jun Ji-hye
Continuous COVID-19 infection clusters at geriatric hospitals and nursing homes across the country have led to an increasing number of deaths of elderly patients who are more vulnerable to the contagious disease.
Among them, a considerable number of patients have died while waiting to be transferred to hospitals treating COVID-19 patients, as intensive care unit (ICU) bed shortages have worsened since the country was hit by the third wave of infections in mid-November.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), Wednesday, the country added 1,050 more infections for Tuesday including 1,025 locally transmitted cases, raising the total caseload to 59,773.
The daily infections fell slightly from 1,046 cases identified Monday, but stayed above 1,000 for a second straight day. Additionally, 20 more people died, raising the death toll to 879.
According to the health authorities and municipal administrations, since January when the nation reported its first virus case, the number of people who have died after being confirmed to have the virus or posthumously tested positive at geriatric hospitals or nursing homes stood at 57 as of Monday.
One such hospital in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, has recently become an infection cluster, reporting more than 160 cases including inpatients and medical staff.
The first death there was reported there Dec. 13, and the number has since increased to 38. Among them, 27 died while waiting to be transferred to hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
Other facilities hit by infection clusters are facing a similar situation.
At a geriatric hospital in Ulsan, which has reported 167 virus patients and 24 deaths, five died while waiting for treatment at hospitals for coronavirus patients.
The Korean Medical Association (KMA) criticized the government for putting those facilities under cohort isolation, referring to a lockdown of the entire facility, saying such measures have aggravated the conditions of virus patients there.
“The government imposed cohort isolation due to shortages of COVID-19 ICU beds. The government should go all out to secure more hospitals specially dedicated to treat virus patients so elderly patients at those facilities can be transferred promptly,” KMA President Choi Dae-zip said during a media conference held in front of the Bucheon hospital, Tuesday.
Citizens joined the criticism of the government's management of facilities housing the elderly.
A medical staffer working at a geriatric hospital in Seoul posted a petition on the website run by the presidential office, calling for “rescuing” virus patients who have been dying while being stuck in the hospitals, like people who were stuck on the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
The ship was in quarantine, docked off the Japanese port city of Yokohama, for several weeks earlier this year and reported over 700 virus patients.
More than 14,700 citizens supported the petition as of 3 p.m., Wednesday.
In response to growing criticism and concerns, the KDCA announced it would operate three emergency response teams that will be dispatched to geriatric hospitals and nursing homes when infection clusters occur, to give a more effective initial response and minimize danger to life.
“Geriatric hospitals and nursing homes require swift action if infection clusters occur as the elderly are more vulnerable to the virus,” Yoon Tae-ho, a senior official at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said during a media briefing. “The government will actively offer the necessary resources to local administrations and those facilities more promptly.”