Evaluating Korea's fight against Covid-19
In 2020, when countries around the world were imposing lockdowns to restraint the spread of coronavirus, South Koreans were already back on the streets. The cases were rising in other countries, but South Korea was effectively flattening its curve and inspiring others to learn its ways. Nonetheless, South Korea, which was once a success story, is facing a surge of Coronavirus cases. In August 2021, South Korea reported twenty deaths, becoming 2021’s highest daily Covid-19 deaths.
Lessons from past
Mask Culture
When ‘masks’ were made mandatory after the outbreak of Covid-19, many people struggled and even hesitated to wear masks. For example, in Mumbai, about 1.4 million people were fined during the second wave for not wearing masks. The Supreme Court of India even stated that those who are not “wearing masks in public spheres are violating the fundamental right to life” of others (Anand, 2020). Moreover, a series of protests by ‘anti-maskers’ emerged in the USA, the UK, Australia, Italy, Canada, etc. Protesters argued that ‘masks’ were violating their freedom and they were ‘okay’ to die from the infection. But the case is entirely different for South Korea!
In South Korea, masks are trendy. Not just in South Korea but other East Asian countries like Japan and China have culturally accepted wearing masks whereas, in other countries, masks are worn only during sickness. Moreover, K-pop stars have made it fashionable to wear masks and thus masks are worn to display modesty and thoughtfulness.
Initially, people started wearing masks out of necessity. South Korea, being a prisoner of geography, can not escape the strong influx of yellow dust, originating from the inland deserts in northern China and Mongolia. The government yearly issues formal warnings to the public through alert messages. Apart from this, South Korea has previously suffered from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and H1N1 Influenza that necessitated the use of masks among the public. The masks became a ‘must-have’ item in every Korean household after the MERS outbreak. The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (caused by coronavirus) only lasted for two months but created havoc in South Korea.
SARS, MERS, and Influenza taught valuable lessons to South Korea. Korea learned the importance of diagnostic tests and basic prevention measures. On December 31, 2019, China reported the first case of Coronavirus. When the virus started spreading across the world, South Korea reported only 30 cases. Despite the low numbers, authorities began working with biotech companies and developed thousands of test kits. In February 2020, Daegu became a hotspot of the Covid-19, after a woman labelled as ‘patient-31’, attended the Shincheonji Church of Jesus with symptoms and became a super spreader. The health authorities in Daegu quickly traced that woman’s whereabouts and identified those who came in contact with her. Whether they showed symptoms or not, all those contacts were tested and quickly isolated for necessary treatment.
3Ts: Track, Test, and Treat
After the Daegu situation, the Korean government launched massive testing movement across the country through contact tracing. Private and national healthcare systems joined hands and set up free testing efforts that included more than six hundred locations that could screen about 20,000 people per day. This system helped the government to trace the patient and break the transmission chain. South Korea also called in the military and police to help with contact tracing efforts.
According to Vox, after the MERS outbreak, Korea changed the law that allowed the government to collect patient data and security footage during an outbreak. To save people from getting the infection, websites and private apps complied the information allowing everyone to see the movement of Coronavirus positive patients along with time and dates on the Corona Map. Citizens also got alert messages on their phones if any positive cases were found near them. Furthermore, the Corona Map helped citizens and the government to ‘see’ the virus. After checking the Corona Map, citizens changed routes or got informed if they have crossed paths with an infected person. The authorities also tracked credit cards and cell phone data to trace the patient and get people tested and treated.
With the help of technology, the South Korean government prioritized public health over privacy. As a result, South Korea was able to test thousands of people more than any other country in 2020. The 3Ts method saved South Korea from aggressive lockdowns and lowered the cases. The government also launched ‘Drive-in’ testing facilities that also boosted the testing process. After patients were tested positive, they were isolated and quarantined. The government turned private corporations into temporary isolation wards to prevent transmission within households and bed shortages in hospitals (Kim et al., 2021). The government also provided meals and other necessities such as therapy and counseling services to quarantined patients.
Many people have also called the 3T approach controversial because this violates human rights. However, it can be argued that the Korean government balanced between public safety and privacy as the map did not reveal the personal information of patients. Moreover, the South Koreans believe in the fact that extra-ordinary measures are required during extra-ordinary times. Thus, the people of the ROK should also be credited for their cooperation and compliance with their leaders in tough times.
Helping Hands
South Korea has always been helpful to other countries during difficult times. In July 2020, the South Korean government pledged $5million to help Colombia fight the pandemic. In May 2021, India also received oxygen concentrators, ventilators, negative pressure carriers, antigen detection kits from South Korea.
South Korea also emerged as a major supplier of Covid-19 related equipment. In April 2020, DHL global shipped 1.3 million Covid-19 test kits to Brazil, India, Ecuador, Poland, Lithuania, and Russia. Recently in July 2021, South Korean companies joined hands with the Delhi government to prepare for the third Covid-19 wave. The equipment would include oxygen concentrators, personal protective gowns, high-end masks, pulse oximeters, sanitizers, etc.
Surge in 2021
South Korea is currently experiencing the fourth wave that is more dangerous due to the Delta variant. Since July 2021, there has been a surge in Coronavirus cases in South Korea. There are more than 1500 cases per day, which is creating panic in society. In July, the government imposed stricter ‘Level-4’ restrictions and shut schools, nightclubs, and bars. The public gathering is also restricted to 2 people after 6 pm. In September, the government has extended the stricter social-distancing measures for another four weeks.
Experts believed that the surge is also due to the slow vaccination rollout. In India, the vaccination program began on 16 January 2021 and in the USA, it began in December 2020. William Gallo writes that South Korea is “among the last developed nations to start mass vaccination” (2021). The authorities have blamed manufacturing and logistics for the delay. South Korea began its vaccination drive in February 2021, in which the high-risk individuals and frontline workers were prioritized. The Korean government has signed deals with overseas providers like Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca, which has become the cause of delayed shipments and supply shortages. Lack of a domestic vaccine increases waiting time and further slows down the entire vaccination program. Thus, the government also wants domestic vaccines that would be cheaper and quickly available to the citizens. In August, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved the clinical trial plan of the vaccine ‘GBP510’, developed by South Korea. According to The Guardian, South Korea ranked “second-to-last among OECD member countries, with only 13.49% of its population fully vaccinated” in July 2021. As of September, about 28.1% of the population is fully vaccinated (Borowiec, 2021).
In the present time, South Korea is struggling to flatten the curve as it did before in 2020. In 2020, South Korea did not have to go through stricter lockdown rules. Whereas in 2021, to curb the existing surge of infections, the authorities have toughened the social distancing measures. South Korea is also planning to introduce booster shots from October 2021. There is no doubt that South Korea set an example of its vigilance after successfully controlling the pandemic in 2020. Nonetheless, the current increase in the number of cases has worried people and the authorities. The country has become stricter with ex-pats as it has laid out mandatory quarantine rules. Apart from stricter rules, the government needs to speed up the vaccination drive and encourage more people to get vaccinated. The government has already allowed vaccinated people to have gatherings. With the help of technology and cooperation, South Korea was able to control the infection when countries around the world were struggling. It can be hoped that people comply with the government’s stricter rules and apply lessons that were learned from the past to contain the virus once again.
References
- Anand, U. (2020, December 3). 'No mask violates the right to life of others', Says Supreme Court . Hindustan Times. https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/no-mask-violates-the-right-to-life-of-others-says-supreme-court/story-XMLlKDyaj9itnReh61rLTO.html.
- ANI. (2021, August 11). First phase 3 clinical trials of South Korean Covid-19 vaccine: BIOSCIENCE'S test plan is approved. ANI News. https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/first-phase-3-clinical-trials-of-south-korean-covid-19-vaccine-biosciences-test-plan-is-approved20210811121442/. \
- Borowiec , S. (2021, July 28). Once a Covid success STORY, South Korea sweats through summer of DELTA SURGE. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/29/once-a-covid-success-story-south-korea-sweats-through-summer-of-delta-surge.
- Choi, J. S. (2020, July 11). S. Korea pledges $5million to help Colombia fight COVID-19. www.donga.com. https://www.donga.com/en/article/all/20200711/2117089/1.
- DHL global ships 1.3 M COVID-19 test kits from South Korea. Life Science Company News, Pharma, Biotechnology, Medical Device, Diagnostics Industry Trends, BioSpectrum Asia. (2020, April 20). https://www.biospectrumasia.com/news/28/15846/dhl-global-ships-1-3-m-covid-19-test-kits-from-south-korea.html.
- Galio, W. (2021, February 24). After initially leading world IN COVID-19 battle, Why is South KOREA Among LAST developed nations to start Mass Vaccinations? Voice of America. https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/after-initially-leading-world-covid-19-battle-why-south-korea-among-last.
- Griffiths, J. (2020, December 8). South Korea and Japan called in the military to fight COVID. as Winter Looms, they aren't taking any chances. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/07/asia/south-korea-japan-coronavirus-intl-hnk/index.html.
- Kim, J. H., An, J. A.-R., Oh, S. J., Oh, J., & Lee, J. K. (2021, February 5). Emerging COVID-19 success STORY: South KOREA learned the lessons of MERS. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/covid-exemplar-south-korea.
- Singh, A. (2021, May 13). COVID-19: India receives 10,000 rapid test kits from S.Korea; 3 special flights to arrive. Republic World. https://www.republicworld.com/india-news/general-news/covid-19-india-receives-10000-rapid-test-kits-from-s-dot-korea-3-special-flights-to-arrive.html.
- Vox. (2020). The big lesson from South Korea's coronavirus response. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE-cA4UK07c
Pic Courtesy-Daniel Bernard at unsplash.com
(The views expressed are those of the author and do not represent views of CESCUBE.)
