“The Normalization of Daegu Medical Tourism –
Establishment of MERS Countermeasures”
The
Daegu Medical Tourism Promotion Agency, alongside Daegu City, has come up with
swift countermeasures against the decreasing medical tourists due to the recent
breakout of MERS. We are trying our best to recover confidence in Medicity
Daegu and to speed up the normalization of medical tourism.
There has been a great deal of setback in the group
tour invited through collaboration with AinA which was a scale of 3,000 people
from April through June. We have sent mail guaranteeing normalization on behalf
of Mayor Kwon, Young Jin to 700 tourists who have cancelled their visit and to 11
overseas partners and offices in China, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Canada who are
working in cooperation with Daegu City.
Currently, the Korean Medical Tourism Industry has an
overall depressed atmosphere but we, at the Promotion Agency, as well as Daegu
City hope to turn the tide around through strengthened marketing projects.
We ask for encouragement and support from all our
related institutions.
10 Thing You Should Know about MERS
Definition
MERS is an acute respiratory
infection caused by a new strain of corona virus.
Symptoms
Other than general respiratory
symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, there may be
symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.
Infection
(2~14 days)
Symptoms occur between 2 to
14 days; and, the disease is known to be noncontagious before the
appearance of symptoms.
Transmission
Generally, the disease is transmitted when a person
comes into contact with bodily fluids released when a carrier of a disease coughs or sneezes within a radius of 2 meters.
Prevention
Wash your hands frequently. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. Cover your mouth and nose with tissue when coughing.
Avoid contact with others if you have a fever or cough.
Self-quarantine
(14 days)
If you have come into close contact with a patient,
call the community health center and you must quarantine
yourself for 14 days from the time you make first contact in order to
avoid spreading the disease to family and others even if you don’t have
symptoms.
Diagnosis
If you have come into close contact with a patient or have symptoms similar to that of MERS after having visited
the Middle East within 14 days, have yourself examined by a physician.
Diagnosis
MERS is diagnosed through genetic testing (RT-PCR) of phlegm
or bronchial tube cleansing solution.
Treatment
A patient receives treatment according to his/her
symptoms. Critical patients receive intensive treatment such as being hooked up
to a respirator or going through dialysis.
If there are no symptoms or fever for 48 hours and if
genetic tests performed every 24 hours show up as negative twice in a row, then
the patient may be released from the hospital.
Equipment
Medical staff must have equipment for washing hands,
disposable gowns and gloves, N95 masks, protective eyewear.
Ministry of Health and Welfare
Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
