Infectious Disease Response System Research Articles

일본의 감염병 대응 시스템 및 과학자문에 대한 일고찰

In the public health crisis situation that occurred with the onset of the 2020 novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic, Korea is evaluated as having succeeded in initial response compared to other countries. At the time, the government's active strategy to respond to infectious diseases, called preemptive testing, tracking, and treatment(3T), attracted global attention. The success of these infectious disease response policies can be said to have played a significant role in scientific advisory. However, it is questionable whether the current scientific advisory system can effectively deal with another crisis in the future. Therefore, a review of overseas scientific advisory is required. In particular, in Japan, since various problems with the method of scientific consultation were pointed out at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, systematization and theorization in this regard have progressed considerably. However, it has been pointed out that Japan's scientific advisory related to Corona 19 did not function sufficiently in an emergency. Therefore, in this paper, we drew implications in Korea by examining Japan's infectious disease response system and scientific advisory at the time of COVID-19.

An analysis of the policy participation of field response nurses in South Korea: COVID-19 response guidelines and the infectious disease act revision.

The Republic of Korea's response to Coronavirus disease 2019 was divided before and after global vaccine development at the end of 2020. It also varied according to the size of confirmed patients in the non-pharmaceutical intervention. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the contribution of frontline nurses to the policy and law revision on infectious diseases and suggest health and nursing policies for emerging infectious diseases in the future. This case evaluation study analyzed the significant policy decisions that nurses' roles brought on changes in the infectious disease response system in the Republic of Korea and applying the health system model and those capacities on resilience under emerging infectious diseases. Objective data that contributed directly to the revision of infectious disease-related Acts and policies in 2020 were collected and analyzed through literature search and information disclosure claims from the first to third waves of Coronavirus disease 2019 in one city. With the rapid outbreak of COVID-19 confirmed cases at the end of February 2020, a pan-government support group was formed and dispatched to D City. In addition, central quarantine officials worked with local quarantine officials to share real-time situations and find out on-site difficulties and support requests. As a result, inquiry of opinions to working staff before changing the "response guidelines to Coronavirus disease 2019" was reflected in major contents on the revision of "policy on infectious disease response" and "Infectious Disease Prevention and Management Act." With the establishment of an epidemiological investigation team in September 2020, the number of new nurses in 17 cities and provinces increased by 19.1% compared to the previous year, the most significant increase compared to doctors (-2.3), dentists (-1.6), and health workers (3.7). The experience of responding to Coronavirus was a reminder that the curriculum needed to be improved so that nurses will be recognized to have leadership competencies and as field experts regarding social determinants of health for population groups in the decision-making process. In the initial COVID-19 response process, nurses showed excellence in analyzing patient interviews and various information as field epidemiological investigation response personnel, making comprehensive judgments, and solving problems in cooperation with related agencies and severe patients' bedside nursing care. Continuous primary care and management of infectious diseases for the vulnerable should be prepared on an ongoing basis to assure the quality of care. Action strategies for developing leadership to enable nurses to have participated in the social determinants of health and the nursing policy formation for health equity should be applied in nursing education and practice, and global monitoring efforts were accelerated.

An environmental scan of one health preparedness and response: the case of the Covid-19 pandemic in Rwanda

BackgroundOver the past decade, 70% of new and re-emerging infectious disease outbreaks in East Africa have originated from the Congo Basin where Rwanda is located. To respond to these increasing risks of disastrous outbreaks, the government began integrating One Health (OH) into its infectious disease response systems in 2011 to strengthen its preparedness and contain outbreaks. The strong performance of Rwanda in responding to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic makes it an excellent example to understand how the structure and principles of OH were applied during this unprecedented situation.MethodsA rapid environmental scan of published and grey literature was conducted between August and December 2020, to assess Rwanda’s OH structure and its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, 132 documents including official government documents, published research, newspaper articles, and policies were analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsRwanda’s OH structure consists of multidisciplinary teams from sectors responsible for human, animal, and environmental health. The country has developed OH strategic plans and policies outlining its response to zoonotic infections, integrated OH into university curricula to develop a OH workforce, developed multidisciplinary rapid response teams, and created decentralized laboratories in the animal and human health sectors to strengthen surveillance. To address COVID-19, the country created a preparedness and response plan before its onset, and a multisectoral joint task force was set up to coordinate the response to the pandemic. By leveraging its OH structure, Rwanda was able to rapidly implement a OH-informed response to COVID-19.ConclusionRwanda’s integration of OH into its response systems to infectious diseases and to COVID-19 demonstrates the importance of applying OH principles into the governance of infectious diseases at all levels. Rwanda exemplifies how preparedness and response to outbreaks and pandemics can be strengthened through multisectoral collaboration mechanisms. We do expect limitations in our findings due to the rapid nature of our environmental scan meant to inform the COVID-19 policy response and would encourage a full situational analysis of OH in Rwanda’s Coronavirus response.

Inter-Korean Health Care and Medicine Cooperation for Joint Response to Infectious Diseases

The purpose of this study is to examine the current status and problems of the North Korea s infectious disease response system during the Kim Jong-un era and to seek inter-Korean cooperation tasks in the health care and medicine field for joint response to infectious diseases. As can be seen from COVID-19, there are no borders on infectious diseases. Although the military demarcation line is blocked between the two Koreas, the dangers of moving large-scale areas of infectious diseases are increasing day by day. Accordingly, the necessity of inter-Korean cooperation in the field of health care and medicine for joint response to infectious diseases is raised. The existence of simultaneous threats between North and South Korea due to the COVID-19 incident can be a chance to change the paradigm of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation. This study proposes the following as a task of inter-Korean health care and medicine cooperation for joint response to infectious diseases. First, systematizing inter-Korean cooperation in health care and medicine and preparing detailed standards, second, signing inter-Korean health and medical agreements, third, establishing a response scenario for each infectious disease, fourth, establishing a dedicated organization for infectious diseases and fostering professional manpower, and fifth, considering the sanctions against North Korea And establishing a cooperation and support system.

The Infectious Disease Network (IDN): Development and Use for Evaluation of Potential Ebola Cases in Georgia.

In response to the 2014 Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa, the Georgia Department of Public Health developed the Infectious Disease Network (IDN) based on an EVD preparedness needs assessment of hospitals and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) providers. The network consists of 12 hospitals and 16 EMS providers with staff specially trained to provide a coordinated response and utilize appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for the transport or treatment of a suspected or confirmed serious communicable disease patient. To become a part of the network, each hospital and EMS provider had to demonstrate EVD capabilities in areas such as infection control, PPE, waste management, staffing and ongoing training, and patient transport and placement. To establish the network, the Georgia Department of Public Health provided training and equipment for EMS personnel, evaluated hospitals for EVD capabilities, structured communication flow, and defined responsibilities among partners. Since March 2015, the IDN has been used to transport, treat, and/or evaluate suspected or confirmed serious communicable disease cases while ensuring health care worker safety. Integrated infectious disease response systems among hospitals and EMS providers are critical to ensuring health care worker safety, and preventing or mitigating a serious communicable disease outbreak. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;12:765-771).

Epidemiology, surveillance and control of infectious diseases in the European overseas countries and territories, 2011

The 25 European overseas countries and territories (OCTs) are closely associated with the European Union (EU) through the four related UE Member States: Denmark, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. In 2008 and 2009, these four EU Member States, in association with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), reviewed the OCTs’ needs, with the objectives of documenting their capacity to prevent and respond to infectious diseases outbreaks, and identifying deficiencies. This Euroroundup is based on the review’s main findings, and presents an overview of the OCTs’ geography and epidemiology, briefly introduces the legal basis on which they are linked to the EU and describes the surveillance and infectious disease response systems. As a result of their diversity the OCTs have heterogeneous epidemiological profiles. A common factor, however, is that the main burden of disease is non-communicable. Nevertheless, OCTs remain vulnerable to infectious diseases outbreaks. Their capacity for surveillance, early detection and response to such outbreaks is generally limited, with laboratory capacity issues and lack of human resources. Avenues for capacity strengthening should be explored by the OCTs and the related EU Member States, in collaboration with ECDC and regional public health networks where these exist.