SEOUL, Feb 26 (NNN-YONHAP) — More hospitals across the country were put into cohort isolation on Wednesday on fears that the country will see additional mass infections of the new coronavirus at such facilities, Yonhap news agency reported.
The country reported an additional 284 confirmed cases of COVID-19 throughout the day, bringing the total to 1,261 with 12 deaths.
A hospital in the southeastern country of Cheongdo has been under cohort isolation since Saturday, and at least seven of the country’s 12 deaths from the novel coronavirus are linked to the facility.
Cohort isolation is the separating of a group of patients with the same infectious disease from others. The method has been proven to be effective in preventing the further spread of disease within medical facilities.
A total of 114 people, including 10 medical workers, have been diagnosed with COVID-19 at Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, just south of Daegu, in North Gyeongsang Province, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The health authorities said 25 patients were removed from Daenam Hospital, following concerns that classifying the patients depending on the severity of the disease and providing appropriate care were not carried out well.
Also, a nursing hospital located in the southern port city of Busan was put under cohort isolation earlier in the day after a member of staff at the facility was found to be infected, the KCDC said. No patient has yet tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.
The 64-year-old caregiver had worked in an intensive-care unit at Asiad Hospital, where most patients are seniors with chronic diseases.
Health authorities said nearly one third of the 193 hospitalized patients at the facility need intensive care, with most of them to be transferred to a nearby hospital.
Another hospital in Changwon, about 400 kilometers south of Seoul, was shuttered on Wednesday for up to 14 days after one more nurse tested positive for the virus.
Three medical staff, including one doctor, were previously confirmed to have the novel virus and went into self-isolation.
A hospital in Daejeon, about 160 kilometers south of Seoul, was also put under cohort isolation after a nurse there tested postive for COVID-19.
Also, at least 21 cases were reported at a small facility that houses people with disabilities in Chilgok, 280 kilometers south of Seoul and just north of Daegu.
The country reported its first cluster of infections centered around a church in Daegu. About 80 percent of all confirmed cases came from two clusters of infections — at a branch of the Shincheonji Church in Daegu and at Daenam Hospital.
Partly to prevent additional cluster infections, the government has raised its alert to the highest level and is also advising people to avoid crowds whenever possible.
