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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Korea reports first locally transmitted case of monkeypox

A sign displaying symptoms of monkeypox is displayed at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, July 24, 2022, in this file photo. YonhapHealth authorities reported the nation's first possible case of community transmission of mpox Saturday, bringing the total number of infections to six.The infected individual, a Korean national with no recent overseas travel history, tested positive for the disease the previous day, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).The person visited a hospital Monday with a skin rash and was reported to health authorities as a suspected case of mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, Thursday.Unlike the previous five cases in the country, which were linked to overseas travel, the latest patient had not traveled abroad within the past three months, the KDCA said.The individual also had no known contact with an infected person, it added.The individual had been experiencing symptoms since the end of March and had been in contact with others for several days.The patient is currently hospitalized and is in good health, the KDCA said.

Apr 8, 2023
Korea reports first locally transmitted case of monkeypox

Korea to launch its space rocket Nuri from mid-May to late-June

Korea's homegrown space rocket Nuri lifts off from Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, southwestern Korea, in this Oct. 21, 2021 file photo. Courtesy of Joint Press CorporationKorea plans to launch its homegrown space rocket Nuri between mid-May and late-June in its third mission, the science ministry said Thursday, following the second successful launch last year. The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), which leads the Nuri project, had initially proposed the launch date in early May, but the schedule has been delayed due to the belated delivery of satellites to be loaded on Nuri.The presidential science advisory committee approved the launch plan, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT.The exact date will be set next month, the ministry added.The 200-ton Nuri, also known as KSLV-II, will carry a total of eight satellites, including the country's second next-generation small satellite and four satellites developed by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, codenamed SNIPE.In June last year, Korea successfully launched the space rocket Nuri in t

Mar 30, 2023
Korea to launch its space rocket Nuri from mid-May to late-June

Korea moves to shorten COVID-19 isolation period to 5 days

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo speaks during a government meeting on COVID-19 response at the Government Complex in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapGovernment announces plans for return to pre-pandemic normality By Jun Ji-hyeThe government is considering shortening the mandatory COVID-19 isolation period to five days from the current seven in May at the earliest, as part of efforts for the transition to an endemic phase.Unveiling a set of plans, Wednesday, the government said the country will move toward pre-pandemic normality in three phases.In phase 1, the government will downgrade the classification of COVID-19 to “alert” from the current “serious,” and shorten the mandatory COVID-19 isolation period to five days from the current seven.Korea has a four-tier system in coping with infectious diseases ― attention, caution, alert and serious ― and COVID-19 has been classified at the top level since February 2020.In phase 2, the remaining mandatory mask rules and isolation mandate for virus patients will be lifted, and in phase 3, COVID-19 will eventually become endemic, m

Mar 29, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Korea moves to shorten COVID-19 isolation period to 5 days

Government to support development of blockbuster drugs

Health and Welfare Minister Cho Kyoo-hong speaks during a meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul, Friday. During the meeting, officials discussed measures to boost exports in the biohealth industry. YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeThe government will boost exports of the domestic biohealth industry, which includes pharmaceuticals, medical devices, medicine and bioengineering, by creating a large fund and supporting the development of blockbuster drugs.The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced Friday that the government will create the “K-biovaccine fund” worth 500 billion won ($387 million) during the first half this year and expand it to 1 trillion won by the end of 2025. Regulations will be eased and various incentives such as government subsidies will be offered to encourage domestic companies to expand their investments and production facilities. Another 2.2 trillion won will be invested by the end of 2030 to support the development of new drugs and help domestic firms enter global markets. This would allow the country to have blockbuster drugs that generate annual sales of

Mar 24, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Government to support development of blockbuster drugs

PM vows better child care services to boost birth rate

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo /YonhapPrime Minister Han Duck-soo said Friday that the government will make efforts to improve child care services, as the nation is struggling to tackle the world's lowest birth rate. Han made the remarks as he visited a child care center in Seoul earlier in the day, Han's office said in a statement. "The low birth rate is based on complex causes, such as jobs, housing, education and child care, but first of all, it is important to establish a child care and care environment that young people can experience," Han said. Han said the government will expand customized child care services so that parents can look after their children at any time.The country's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime, sank to 0.78 in 2022, well below the replacement level of 2.1 that would keep South Korea's population stable at 51.5 million. (Yonhap)

Mar 24, 2023
PM vows better child care services to boost birth rate

Burnout: Cardiothoracic surgery residents work 102 hours a week

gettyimagesbankOverworked doctors barely given break times to rest and recoverBy Jun Ji-hyeMedical residents in Korea work 77.7 hours a week on average, with more than half of them working over 80 hours, despite the current law capping the maximum weekly working hours to 80 for those in medical residency programs. Residents in the department of cardiothoracic surgery work the longest hours ― 102.1 hours a week.The figures were the findings of recent research conducted by the Korean Intern and Resident Association (KIRA). The association interviewed 1,903 medical residents from a variety of departments.Rep. Shin Hyun-young, a doctor-turned-lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, received the alarming findings from the association and released it to the media, claiming that the overwork culture of medical residents is at a seriously worrisome level.The issue is drawing keen attention at a time when the government's move to reform the country's 52-hour workweek system has sparked huge controversy. Under the reform measures announced by the Ministry of Employment and L

Mar 24, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Burnout: Cardiothoracic surgery residents work 102 hours a week

Free COVID-19 boosters to be offered once this year

Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyoo-hong speaks during a government meeting on COVID-19 response measures at the Government Complex in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeThe government will provide bivalent COVID-19 booster shots one time this year. Anyone aged over 12 can receive the injection for free, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced, Wednesday.The free COVID-19 vaccination will be offered from October to November with the aim of preventing people from falling seriously ill or dying when they contract the virus.Even if COVID-19 is downgraded on a global level during the World Health Organization's (WHO) meeting, which is scheduled for late April or early May, the government will maintain its free COVID-19 vaccination policy. The KDCA said high-risk groups for COVID-19 are actively recommended to receive the shot. People in those groups include those aged over 65 and those working for or who have been hospitalized at long-term elderly care facilities.Health authorities had originally categorized those aged over 60 as a high-risk group, but this

Mar 22, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Free COVID-19 boosters to be offered once this year

Kangbuk Samsung Hospital to carry out medical system improvement project in Nepal

Kangbuk Samsung Hospital in Seoul / Courtesy of Kangbuk Samsung HospitalBy Jun Ji-hyeKangbuk Samsung Hospital has been selected by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to carry out a project on improving the medical infrastructure and health standards of the underprivileged in vulnerable areas of Nepal's Bhaktapur. The hospital said Wednesday that it will carry out a variety of social contribution activities in the country over the next five years.Under the theme of Project for Capacity Building of Medical Service to Achieve Universal Health Coverage for the Poor in Vulnerable Areas in Bhaktapur, Nepal, the hospital will expand the Nepal Korea Friendship Municipality Hospital located in the region and provide medical equipment worth about $15 million.The hospital will also strengthen the skills of the Nepalese hospital's medical staff and those working at 19 nearby health centers. “Considering that more than 80 percent of Nepal's population live in rural or mountainous areas, we are planning to additionally support the mobile telemedicine system,” said Kang

Mar 22, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Kangbuk Samsung Hospital to carry out medical system improvement project in Nepal

Childcare centers, academies returning to pre-pandemic normality

Children without masks play at a childcare center in Gwangju, Jan. 30, as the government lifted most mandatory indoor mask-wearing rules. YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeChildcare centers and private tutoring academies are getting closer to a return to pre-pandemic normality, as most COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted in Korea including the mask mandate on public transportation amid an overall downtrend in infections. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Tuesday, COVID-19 guidelines for childcare centers were eased starting Monday, with the temperature check requirement abolished.Before the eased guidelines were applied, childcare centers had been required to check the temperature of teachers, infants and toddlers more than twice a day. The eased guidelines call for temperature checks to be carried out when a childcare center has any confirmed cases. Childcare centers had also been advised to install partition boards at canteens. This has been changed and is now up to each center, with the guideline of “safe distance” at canteens abolished. The mask guideline for teach

Mar 21, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Childcare centers, academies returning to pre-pandemic normality

Korea, US to expand cooperation in science, technology

Science and ICT Minister Lee Jong-ho speaks during a report on business in the new year by the ministry at the former presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul reporting to President Yoon Suk Yeol that Korea's unmanned space vehicle Danuri has successful entered the orbit of the moon earlier than planned in this Dec. 28, 2022 file photo. YonhapKorea and the United States agreed to expand bilateral cooperation in science and technology, Seoul's science ministry said Tuesday.The Ministry of Science and ICT said it signed a joint statement of intent with the Science and Technology Directorate, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in Seoul, to foster cooperation in digital transformation.Under the joint statement, the two countries will carry out joint research on core infrastructure, unmanned drone systems, cybersecurity and biochemical defense and promote human exchanges in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.The deal is a follow-up to the Seoul-Washington summit last year when both leaders promised to strengthen bilateral partnership in up-to-date technolo

Mar 21, 2023
Korea, US to expand cooperation in science, technology
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