Transmission cluster in Daegu, N. Gyeongsang spikes rise in demand for coronavirus testing

Posted on : 2020-02-26 17:04 KST Modified on : 2020-08-18 16:55 KST
Experts express concerns of shortage in medical personnel and supplies
<b>A health worker at Ulsan University Hospital, a state-designated facility for treating novel coronavirus patients. (Yonhap News)<br><br></b>
A health worker at Ulsan University Hospital, a state-designated facility for treating novel coronavirus patients. (Yonhap News)

A steep rise in demand for testing for novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province -- especially among people associated with the Shincheonji religious sect’s Daegu branch -- is raising concerns about public health institutions’ ability to cope with it all. Experts said the situation was “manageable at present,” explaining that it “should be possible to do up to 20,000 tests per day going forward.”

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced that it was conducting testing for a total of 13,880 people as of 4 pm on Feb. 25, including roughly 10,000 in the Daegu area. Around 7,500 testing results have been produced each day, indicating a backlog of around 6,000.

The South Korean government’s plan to test the 9,300 members of Shincheonji’s Daegu branch and all 28,000 Daegu residents with cold-like symptoms has caused the number of tests pending in the Daegu area to spike. As recently as Feb. 23, there were 8,058 people being tested around the country.

“Some hospitals in Daegu don’t have enough of the tubes needed to collect blood samples,” said Chun Chang-ho, a professor of laboratory medicine at Daegu Catholic University Hospital.

If the authorities move ahead with testing all Shincheonji members around the country before long, the testing load would get even heavier. South Korea’s Central Disaster Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said on Tuesday that, after receiving a list of Shincheonji members around the country, it would start testing those who are considered high-risk.

“Since we’re not able to test large numbers [of Shincheonji members] at once, we’re planning to test those with suspicious symptoms first and gradually expand testing after that. The primary targets for testing are those with suspicious symptoms, those who are connected with Daegu, and those who have come into contact with members in Daegu,” said KCDC director Jung Eun-kyeong. There are reportedly around 215,000 people on Shincheonji’s membership rolls.

Jung also addressed concerns that the country’s testing capacity would be overwhelmed. “We’re spreading out the sites responsible for testing, and we’re carrying out as many tests as possible by getting four tests a day from sites that were doing three.”

There are currently 79 sites around the country that are testing for the coronavirus, including hospitals and organizations that specialize in such tests. Since a dozen or so other sites are currently waiting for official government approval, the number of testing sites will probably increase to 90 before long.

Government says it should be able to test “as many as 20,000 people a day”

Increasing the number of diagnostic test sites in this manner, experts predict, could enable the country to handle nearly three times the current daily testing load. “If more sites are designated to handle testing and if more staff is assigned to test for COVID-19, we should be able to test as many as 20,000 people a day,” said the Korean Society of Laboratory Medicine in a press conference at Seoul Square in downtown Seoul on Tuesday.

But even if that prediction is correct, it would likely take at least two months to test all Shincheonji members. “Even if we increase our testing capacity to 20,000 a day, we can’t dedicate our entire capacity to testing Shincheonji members. Assuming that 25-50% of the load is allotted to them, it would take about a month, assuming 100,000 members,” said Lee Hyeok-min, an executive director of the Korean Society of Laboratory Medicine. If Shincheonji actually has 200,000 members, as its rolls indicate, a back-of-the-envelope calculation suggests that a full test could take more than two months.

The South Korean government said that, by Tuesday morning, 58 medical personnel had responded to a government appeal and volunteered to help with COVID-19 in the Daegu region. “As of 10 am this morning, the volunteers include five doctors, 32 nurses, eight nursing assistants, three medical laboratory scientists, and 10 hospital administrators,” said Kim Kang-lip, deputy director of the central disease control headquarters, during the regular briefing on Tuesday. The government is asking for more medical volunteers, citing a serious shortage of personnel to collect samples.

By Park Su-ji, staff reporter

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories