South Korea experienced one of World’s largest initial outbreaks of COVID19 coming from China. However the United Status and many Europeans countries, We have been able to contain and drastically reduce the spread of the virus at least so far, and without imposing a nationwide lock down. Our response may provide insight that can help other goverments and civil-society working to combat the COVID19
1.How did South Korea reduce COVID19’s patients
As you know, South Korea’s government focused on aggressive testing and contact tracing to contain community movement, and establish a strict triage system to protect health care workers. Testing and tracing alone did not stop the spread of the virus. The country’s civil society played a critical role by monitoring the situation closely, helping to hold the authorities accountable, and reaching the most vulnerable social groups.
The government procure high-quality diagnostic kits based on a tightly coordinated transfer of public-funded technology to private manufacturers, and quickly established a mass testing system which public-health centers played a central part. Each time a new case was identified, local governments used contact tracing to quarantine potential carriers and publicly disclosed their individual travel histories.
For contact tracing, the authorities relied on mobile-phone GPS data, credit-card transaction records, and CCTV footage. While this use of personal data is legal in South Korea and proved effective in combating the virus, it also raised significant privacy concerns. Over the last two months, some patients whose detailed travel history was made public have been blamed, as if they had recklessly put others at risk of infection
As governments around the world increasingly adopt wartime-like measures to fight the COVID19, civil-society groups must prevent policymakers from responding in ways that further exacerbate inequalities or marginalize the most vulnerable groups. Such efforts were crucial to South Korea’s success, and they can help other countries to beat the virus, too.
