Flattening the Curve on COVID-19: South Korea’s Measures in Tackling Initial Outbreak of Coronavirus

Abstract

The spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is causing an unprecedented crisis around the world, with South Korea being no exception. South Korea experienced a surge of COVID-19 cases on February 19 2020, but was able to flatten the COVID-19 curve in only 20 days without enforcing lockdown measures that restrict the freedom and movement of people. To analyze how South Korea achieved as such, this study is based on the actual field experience of the Korean government's COVID-19 response team who participated in drafting the ‘Tacking COVID-19: Korean experience’ and in-depth analysis on past South Korean government experience from the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome of 2015. This paper finds three prominent factors behind Korea’s responses against COVID-19. First, it is crucial that the government responds as ‘one team’ efficiently to cooperate and respond to COVID-19. Second, a novel approach is needed to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus. Information and communication technology (ICT) had a key role in South Korea's strategy to contain COVID-19. Third, an effective response to COVID-19 was possible due to the successful partnership between the general public and state authorities.