The number of national infection response personnel is about 4,300… Up 75% from before COVID-19.

KCDC announces the results of the first infectious disease survey, including the current status before and after COVID-19
Although the number of epidemiological investigators and related personnel has significantly increased since the pandemic, it has greatly expanded compared to 2019
The overall decline in Grade 1 infectious diseases, which include legal infectious diseases requiring “total surveillance”…conditions such as whooping cough have increased,

Yonhap News,
, ‘During the three-year COVID-19 pandemic period when daily new infections reached tens of thousands, the national response personnel for infectious diseases increased significantly.’, Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, around 2,400 local government personnel in 2019 increased by 75% to approximately 4,300 by the end of last year, according to the survey.,
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, ‘Although temporary personnel for epidemic spread tracking has been significantly reduced, it was possible to secure this dedicated workforce due to the effective legislative establishment of epidemiological investigators and other related structures.’,
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, ‘It was observed that the total number of patients with ‘, legal Grade 1-3 infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, decreased by nearly half after the COVID-19 pandemic.,
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, ‘The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the results of the ‘, first infectious disease survey, ‘ conducted last year for the period from 2017 to 2019 and 2020 to 2022 on the 31st. This survey was conducted for the first time after mandatory implementation of the survey in September 2020, in accordance with Article 17 of the Infectious Disease Prevention Act, every three years to effectively establish and implement policies for the prevention and management of infectious diseases.’,
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, ‘The prevalence survey conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs from the end of June last year to the end of last month spanned 17 metropolitan cities and provinces and 232 city, county, and district areas nationwide over a year. The main survey items included the current status of legal infectious disease occurrence before and after COVID-19 and the status of infectious disease response organizations and personnel before and after COVID-19.’,
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, “Legal infectious diseases are infectious diseases categorized as Grades 1-4 (89 types) operated by the authorities based on Article 2 of the Infectious Disease Prevention Act, taking into account the risk of disease transmission, severity, and quarantine requirements, where Grades 1-3 are subject to ‘total surveillance’. COVID-19, which was initially classified as Grade 2 during the early phase of the pandemic, was downgraded to Grade 4 like influenza at the end of August last year.”,
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, ‘Comparing the average number of Grade 1-3 infectious diseases before and after COVID-19, ‘, the number of Grade 1-3 infectious diseases decreased by 46.6% from 18,6035 cases before the COVID-19 outbreak (2017-2019) to 9,9409 cases after the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2022).,
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KCDC provided,
, ‘For Grade 1 infectious diseases, there were no reported cases other than 1 case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2018 and 1 case each of botulism in 2019 and 2020.’,
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, ‘Grade 2 infectious diseases showed a trend of overall decline since 2020 when the first COVID-19 case was reported. Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infection continued to increase exception…(2022: 35,481 cases). Particularly, the increase was noticeable in the elderly population.’,
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, ‘In addition, with the level of infectious disease crisis alert lowered from \’severe\’ to \’alert\’ last year and outdoor activities becoming more active, respiratory-related infectious diseases such as whooping cough and scarlet fever are showing signs of resurgence.’,
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, ‘The authorities have established a “Respiratory Infections Response Task Force” within the KCDC to enhance management for a smooth response.’,
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, ‘For Grade 3 infectious diseases, despite a decrease in occurrence after COVID-19, individual infectious diseases are showing a cycle of increase and decrease.’,
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, ‘Among the major infectious diseases with a high number of occurrences, hepatitis C peaked at 11,850 cases in 2020 and gradually declined from 2021. It further decreased to 8,308 cases in 2022.’,
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, ‘In order to detect infectious diseases early, the introduction of hepatitis C antibody testing has been decided for the national health examination starting next year. Authorities report that the foundation for eradicating hepatitis C by 2030 has been established.’,
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, The most significant change following the COVID-19 pandemic is undoubtedly the expansion of infectious disease response organizations and personnel.,
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, ‘As of last year, there were a total of 4,261 infectious disease response personnel nationwide, representing a 75.1% increase compared to 2,434 personnel in 2019, before the start of the COVID-19 outbreak.’,
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, ‘The response personnel for metropolitan cities and provinces increased from 169 in 2019 to 387 in 2023, showing a growth rate of 129.0%, while the personnel for city, county, and district areas surged from 2,265 to 3,874 (71.0% increase) based on response criteria. Authorities evaluated this as a result of the efforts to prioritize organizational restructuring and personnel expansion within local autonomous bodies.’,
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, “In terms of responsibilities, ‘Other Infectious Disease Response’ (18.5%)―such as managing group outbreak facilities vulnerable to infectious disease spread, conducting disaster preparedness drills, and supporting epidemiological investigations―accounted for the highest proportion. This was followed by vaccination programs (17.1%), tuberculosis control (12.6%), and overall infectious disease management (12.3%).”,
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, ‘In particular, for Grade 2 infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, a second comprehensive tuberculosis management plan (2018-2022) has been established to minimize treatment discontinuation cases. From 2020 onwards, dedicated personnel have been deployed for tuberculosis control with continued budget support. Tuberculosis, a chronic infectious disease requiring long-term treatment ranging from 6 to up to 20 months, has been steadily decreasing in patients since the onset of the COVID-19 era (2021: 22,904 cases→2022: 23,832 cases→2023: 19,540 cases).’,
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KCDC provided,
, ‘Even when examining the periodic personnel, ‘, tentative personnel have largely decreased, but the scale expanded significantly compared to 2019, ‘ and is being maintained. During the Omicron variant spread period of COVID-19 in April 2022, around 500 temporary personnel, including epidemiological investigators, were intensively deployed.’,
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, ‘The authorities emphasized that above all, the continuous progress in legislative amendments and institutional foundations in response to changing crisis situations since the Enactment of the Infectious Disease Prevention Act in 2000, which first established the legal basis for epidemiological investigators, played a crucial role.’,
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, ‘Ji-yeong Mi, the director of KCDC, stated, “Through the results of this first infectious disease survey, we reconfirmed that the dedicated efforts of local governments and medical personnel including temporary investigators helped overcome the COVID-19 crisis together,” adding that “the experience of managing infectious disease response organizations during the COVID-19 period will be a valuable foundation for preparing for future pandemics.”‘,
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, ‘She further said, “In the future, the government will continue to actively prepare by promptly revising guidelines and legislation, establishing medium- and long-term plans, providing relevant budget support, and building institutional foundations in response to changing conditions,” and added, “Efforts will be made to ensure that personnel for infectious disease response and management are continuously maintained and strengthened on the frontline.”‘,
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