Kim Dong-yeon: "Make Every Effort to Prepare for Lunar New Year Holiday Emergency Response, Establish Emergency Medical System, and Prevent Safety Accidents"

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Kim Gap-dong] Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon, who is visiting Switzerland to participate in the World Economic Forum (Davos Forum), held an emergency video conference at 8:00 a.m. local time on the 23rd (4:00 p.m. Korea time) ahead of the Lunar New Year to inspect emergency medical conditions and disaster preparedness.

The conference was attended by Vice Governor Kim Sung-joong (Administration), Fire and Disaster Management Headquarters Director Cho Seon-ho, Gyeonggi Province Medical Center Director Lee Pil-su and five hospital directors, Aju University Hospital Director Park Jun-sung and eight other regional emergency medical center hospital directors, and Deputy Chairman Kim Ki-ju of the Korean Long-term Care Hospital Association, among others.

Governor Kim Dong-yeon said, "Since the Lunar New Year holiday period is long, we decided to hold a video conference from afar to inspect various emergency situations related to residents' safety and health," and added, "I hope residents will spend a safe and healthy holiday by thoroughly preparing medical and disaster readiness as planned without any hitches."

Governor Kim then emphasized emergency medical care and disaster preparedness.

Governor Kim said, "With influenza patients surging recently, there are concerns about emergency room overcrowding during the Lunar New Year holiday. Last Chuseok, we overcame the crisis of medical service gaps through disaster management fund support, so I hope you will make every effort to implement an emergency medical system during this holiday period."

He continued, "Operate a 24-hour disaster and safety situation room to make every effort in safety management, such as preparing for heavy snow and severe cold that may occur, and I would appreciate it if you pay more attention to vulnerable groups given the long holiday period. I also hope you will maintain emergency communication networks between the province and cities/counties, and establish a rapid reporting and response cooperation system. During this Lunar New Year holiday period, safety, disaster preparedness, and emergency medical system are priority number one," he emphasized.

The Lunar New Year holiday period is lengthened due to temporary public holiday designation, and concerns about emergency room overcrowding are rising due to increased influenza patients. The province will operate an emergency response week for the Lunar New Year holiday from the 22nd to February 5th to actively respond to prevent medical care gaps for severe patients and resolve emergency room overcrowding.

First, the system has been reorganized to ensure severe patients receive prompt treatment centered on regional emergency medical centers (9 facilities) and regional emergency medical centers (5 facilities). During the four-day holiday, the province will secure and operate a total of 6,341 open clinics and hospitals and a total of 10,779 pharmacies in Gyeonggi Province. This represents a 2.2-fold increase compared to last year's Lunar New Year (2,844 facilities), and is expected to minimize medical service gaps during the holiday period.

To prevent emergency room congestion during the Lunar New Year holiday, six Gyeonggi Province Medical Center hospitals will provide normal treatment on the temporary public holiday (January 27), and a transfer system has been established to 46 cooperative hospitals including Gyeonggi Province Medical Center in case high-risk influenza patients occur at 287 long-term care hospitals in the province.

Additionally, the province is conducting fire prevention and safety inspections at 336 traditional markets and public facilities this month for a safe Lunar New Year celebration, strengthening cooperation with emergency medical institutions and establishing disaster response readiness. Fire departments will conduct special alert operations from the 24th to February 3rd to expand preventive patrols in fire-vulnerable areas during the holiday period.

In preparation for heavy snow and severe cold, the province has secured 114,000 tons of de-icing agent (23% above the standard amount), and is promoting preemptive de-icing in areas where black ice is a concern. Additionally, warm shelters will operate with approximately 4,000 daytime locations and 33 nighttime locations, and safety inspections will be conducted for disaster-vulnerable groups such as elderly people living alone through confirmation calls.

The province will operate the 24-hour Gyeonggi Province disaster and safety situation room during the Lunar New Year holiday to monitor and manage disasters and natural disasters, with plans to immediately disseminate information to related agencies in case of emergency situations and take rapid initial response measures.