Topic: Actions towards the Containment of the Novel Corona Virus (Covid-19)

Country: South Korea

School: College of San Benildo-Rizal

On February 11, 2020 the World Health Organization announced an official name for the
disease that is causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, first identified in Wuhan China. The
new name of this disease is coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated as COVID-19. In COVID-19,
‘CO’ stands for ‘corona,’ ‘VI’ for ‘virus,’ and ‘D’ for disease. Formerly, this disease was
referred to as “2019 novel coronavirus” or “2019-nCoV”. This virus was first detected in Wuhan
City, Hubei Province, China. The first infections were linked to a live animal market, but the
virus is now spreading from person-to-person. It’s important to note that person-to-person spread
can happen on a continuum. Some viruses are highly contagious (like measles), while other
viruses are less so. The virus that causes COVID-19 seems to be spreading easily and sustainably
in the community (“community spread”) in some affected geographic areas. Community spread
means people have been infected with the virus in an area, including some who are not sure how
or where they became infected. The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting 146 countries and
territories around the world and 1 international conveyance (the Diamond Princess Cruise ship
harboured in Yokohama, Japan). As of March 14, 2020, there are 145,993 confirmed
Coronavirus Cases, 5,440 Deaths and 72,553 Recovered patients. And on March 11, 2020 the
Director General of the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic.

March 11, 2020, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a message that the
new pandemic phase in the fight was “a call for responsibility and solidarity – as nations united,
and as people united." “As we fight the virus, we cannot let fear go viral”, he added, noting that
“together, we can still change the course of this pandemic – but that means addressing inaction.”
"The best science tells us, if countries detect, test, treat, isolate, trace and mobilize their people in
the response, we can go a long way to mitigating transmission." He called on every government
to step up and scale up their efforts, adding that “as we mourn all those who have lost their lives
and the many families who are suffering, we must show solidarity with the most vulnerable – the
elderly, the sick, those without reliable healthcare, and those on the edge of poverty." A new
coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Solidarity Response Fund will raise money from a wide range
of donors to support the work of the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners to help
countries respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund, the first-of-its-kind, enables private
individuals, corporations and institutions anywhere in the world to come together to directly
contribute to global response efforts, and have been created by the United Nations Foundation
and the Swiss Philanthropy Foundation, together with WHO. “We are at a critical point in the
global response to COVID-19 – we need everyone to get involved in this massive effort to keep
the world safe,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “We are
immensely grateful to the UN Foundation and the Swiss Philanthropy Foundation for coming
forward to help us set up this fund. A lot of people and institutions have been saying they want to
contribute to the fight against the novel coronavirus. Now they can.” With the World Health
Organization (WHO) declaring COVID-19 as a pandemic, the underprivileged like domestic
helps and drivers are at higher risk due to a lack of knowledge and weak access to health care.
Keeping the challenge in mind, Smile Foundation has created visual aids to explain what the
virus is, how it spreads and preventive measures. The organization has decided to share basic
hygiene tips with people like washing hands frequently, avoiding social gatherings and seeking
early medical care if one experiences fever, cough or difficulty in breathing. For this purpose, the
organization has also created Smile on Wheels healthcare vans that travel across slum areas to
create awareness against the spread of the COVID-19. "Poor urban settlements are extremely
vulnerable as the residents are constantly on the move, often traveling within settlements,
between cities and rural homes," Dr K.S. Eswar, doctor from a healthcare van told IANS.

In South Korea, there are encouraging signs that the outbreak is stabilizing and that
authorities are making progress in flattening the curve. South Korea has experienced one of the
worst COVID-19 outbreaks outside China with just over 7,700 confirmed cases reported by
March 11. Approximately three quarters of its cases occurred in the city of Daegu with 63% of
the total number infected directly related to the Shinchonji religious group. According to the
latest Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, the number of new daily infections
across the country has largely declined in recent days. On the last day of February, there were
909 new cases in total and on March 10, the number had fallen to 131. The newest March 11
data shows an increase to 242, though that number is still someway short of the daily totals
recorded towards the end of February. For the first time in nearly three weeks, South Korea's
cumulative curve has indeed flattened somewhat. That's primarily due to the government moving
swiftly to ensure free and widespread public testing for COVID-19. So far, more than 200,000
tests have been carried out and the city of Goyang established an innovative drive-thru testing
area, a move that has been copied by some regional officials in Germany. In an interview with
CNN, South Korean Health Minister Park Neunghoo said that he is hoping that his country has
passed the peak. Emphasizing the success of early testing, he added that "detecting patients at an
early stage is very important and we learned the simple lessons by dealing with this virus that
this is very contagious — and once it starts, it spreads very quickly and in very wide areas." Park
also said that "raising the testing capability is very important because that way, you can detect
someone who's carrying the virus, then you can contain the virus". If the positive trend
continues, South Korea's strategy will surely become a model for other impacted countries to
follow.

As South Korea combats one of the world’s worst outbreaks of Covid-19, the country has
armed itself with a potent weapon – innovation. While the government oversees the countrywide
response, national laboratories and start-ups alike are pouring money and manpower into
solutions to manage the crisis. Under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevent Act, the public
has the right to be informed about all developments and responses in disease control. Not only
are government briefings on the outbreak held twice a day, the law enables related authorities to
access a wide range of information resources. Information is shared with the public through an
interactive website, Corona Map. South Korea’s large number of confirmed Covid-19 cases can
largely be attributed to the country’s widespread testing regime. The country has tested more
than 200,000 people and has the capability to test up to 20,000 per day, government officials told
foreign reporters this week .Seoul-based diagnostic company Seegene has developed a diagnostic
kit for the novel coronavirus that reduced the time to get results from 24 hours to only six hours.
The company uses an artificial intelligence-powered automated production system to produce
tests more quickly. South Korea’s SOP essentially calls for five steps: an aggressive and
transparent information campaign, high volume testing, quarantine of infected individuals,
treatment of those in need, and disinfection of contaminated environments. These may seem like
obvious measures, but proper execution is ultimately what decides their effectiveness. With
companies promoting telecommuting, schools closed until the end of March and universities
extending their winter vacation, tech firms are helping the public cope with the necessary social
distancing and isolation. The South Korean Government believes that these plans will work as
South Korea reported more recoveries from the coronavirus than new infections on Saturday
(Mar 14) for the second day is a row, as a downward trend in daily cases raised hopes that Asia's
biggest epidemic outside China may be slowing.