Lee Jae-myung Urges Private Medical Personnel to Step Forward Again...Tests Negative for COVID-19

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hoon] Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung has tested negative for COVID-19 and has once again appealed for help from private sector medical personnel.

Governor Lee announced through his SNS on the 18th, "I've been waiting anxiously for my test results, and just now it came back negative for COVID-19. However, my family members' test results are still not out, so it looks like I'll have to spend tonight alone at the Suwon official residence and won't be able to go to my home in Seongnam tonight."

The governor entered self-quarantine on the day after one family member developed a cough.

Earlier, the governor posted on SNS that "Gyeonggi Province will pursue every available measure to protect residents' lives and safety."

Through the post, the governor conveyed his determination to pursue all possible measures to protect residents' lives and safety, while simultaneously delivering the message that the province faces a serious shortage of medical personnel rather than hospital beds.

Governor Lee stated, "Hospital beds are being secured, but medical personnel are not keeping pace. In the case of COVID-19 critical patients, 4 to 5 times the number of medical personnel is needed compared to regular hospital beds. Therefore, as hospital beds increase, medical personnel must be deployed at 4 to 5 times the normal level. Right now, the cooperation of private sector medical personnel is the strongest and only way forward. I earnestly request this. Medical personnel who can work on the frontlines, please step forward now."

The following is the full text of Governor Lee Jae-myung's SNS post.

<Gyeonggi Province will pursue every available measure to protect residents' lives and safety>
Regrettable deaths of COVID-19 patients continue to occur in cohort-isolated long-term care hospitals where patients with underlying conditions reside. We offer our deepest condolences and heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families. We feel the gravity of our responsibility in light of this grave situation.
At the same time, some media outlets have misreported this as "deaths outside hospitals," causing excessive alarm. We confirm that even though the isolation ward is not a critical care unit, two doctors were still monitoring patients at the hospital in question.
While the national situation is similar, Gyeonggi Province faces a serious problem of medical personnel shortage rather than hospital bed shortage. In terms of beds, 25 new beds are being secured even tomorrow (the 19th), and we are already expanding beds through cooperation from several small and medium-sized private hospitals. We are also considering emergency mobilization of private hospital beds in preparation for any potential surge in confirmed cases. Living treatment centers for mild cases are also being secured not only from Gyeonggi University dormitories but also from large facilities step by step.
The problem is that as hospital beds are secured, medical personnel are not keeping pace. In the case of COVID-19 critical patients, 4 to 5 times the number of medical personnel is needed compared to general hospital beds. Therefore, medical personnel must be deployed at 4 to 5 times the normal level as hospital beds increase.
There are two ways to secure medical personnel: receiving support from the central government, but personnel have already been depleted in that regard, and public health doctors have limited availability. Right now, the cooperation of private sector medical personnel is the strongest and only way forward. I earnestly request this. Medical personnel who can work on the frontlines, please step forward now.
Gyeonggi Province will pursue every available measure to protect residents' lives and safety, even if it requires some strain. I urge all residents to trust the quarantine authorities and to strictly follow quarantine guidelines for yourselves, your families, and your neighbors.
*Medical personnel who wish to provide medical support should contact the Gyeonggi Province Call Center at 031-120.