Suwon City Announces Negative Results for 3 Suspected Wuhan Pneumonia Cases

[Suwon Ilbo = Reporter Seo Dong-young] Suwon City announced on the 29th that test results for 3 suspected cases of novel coronavirus infection that occurred in the city on the 28th came back negative for all 3 individuals.

The 3 suspected cases were transferred on the morning of the 28th to the Army Capital Hospital and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital (2 cases) for isolation treatment. There were 2 Koreans and 1 Chinese national. The Gyeonggi Province Institute of Health and Environment tested the samples, and all tested negative on the evening of the 28th.

As of 10 a.m. on the 29th, the city has 2 suspected cases and 10 individuals under active surveillance. 2 additional suspected cases that occurred on the afternoon of the 28th are currently being isolated at Myongji Hospital in Goyang. Both are Koreans who recently visited China.

The Suwon City Health Center is regularly calling individuals under active surveillance to check their status and providing response guidelines. Currently, all 10 individuals show no abnormal findings.

※Suspected Case: A person who traveled to Hubei Province, China (including Wuhan) within the past 14 days and developed fever (37.5 degrees or higher) or respiratory symptoms (cough, sore throat, etc.). A person who had close contact with a confirmed patient during the patient's symptom onset period and developed fever or respiratory symptoms within 14 days. An epidemiological investigator determines whether a suspected case exists. Admitted to an isolation ward.

※Individual Under Active Surveillance: A person who did not have close contact with a confirmed novel coronavirus infection patient but was in the same space and does not exhibit relevant symptoms.

Meanwhile, the city held a "Report Meeting on Response Implementation for Novel Coronavirus Infection" at the City Hall Disaster and Safety Situation Room on the 29th, chaired by First Vice Mayor Cho Cheong-sik, and reviewed the response status.

The city operates a "Novel Coronavirus Infection Countermeasures Headquarters General Response Team" with Mayor Yeom Tae-young as the head. Public officials at the Disaster and Safety Situation Room are working 24-hour emergency shifts to handle the situation.

On the 29th, the city will distribute posters containing explanations of novel coronavirus infection and prevention guidelines to all hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies in the jurisdiction, and plans to post them at bus stops.

Additionally, the city plans to inform religious facilities, where many people gather on Sundays, of infection disease prevention methods and request that they "exercise special caution against the spread of infectious diseases."

The heads of health centers from 4 districts who attended the meeting noted that "inquiries related to novel coronavirus infection have surged at health centers, and there are times when we cannot respond quickly," and requested understanding, saying "We apologize if there are delays."

First Vice Mayor Cho Cheong-sik instructed, "Always strengthen the response system in preparation for confirmed cases," and "If confirmed cases occur, check the system again to ensure that patient contact histories can be immediately identified."

He added, "Currently, there is a situation where inquiry calls to the Disease Control and Prevention Agency (1339) have surged and connections are not working well," and said, "Educate counselors so that not only health centers but also the human call center can answer citizens' questions about infectious diseases."

The city is publicizing response measures for coronavirus infection through all promotional channels, including its homepage (http://www.suwon.go.kr) and social media. Mayor Yeom Tae-young regularly posts the city's coronavirus infection response status on his personal SNS (Facebook) and is disclosing all information.