South Korea: Gov't lacks budget to prevent TB outbreak

In the wee hours of Nov. 19, a tuberculosis (TB) patient in his 40s left a TB specialized hospital where he was in quarantine and disappeared. The patient only identified by his surname Kim was diagnosed with TB and had been getting treatment at the Seobuk Hospital in Seoul for three months.

Kim took advantage of the lax nighttime security at the hospital and changed into ordinary clothes and departed, according to police.

The Eunpyeong Police Station in Seoul has been trying to trace Kim's whereabouts but has so far been unsuccessful.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control notes, "The bacteria that cause TB are spread through the air from person to person when a person with the disease coughs, speaks or sings. People nearby may breathe in these bacteria and become infected. People with TB usually have symptoms and may spread the TB bacteria to others."

TB patients are treated separately from other patients due to the highly infectious nature of the disease, however, when a patient runs away it becomes a desperate chase by police and creates public fear of a possible outbreak.

Even though there have been several cases of TB patients on the loose, the government has been irresponsible in its response; and the lack of a budget has made it difficult to prevent and manage TB patients.

Among the 35 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations Korea has the most TB patients accounting for 77 out of every 100,000 people.

Police pursuit of runaway patient

There have been several incidences where a TB patient has broken quarantine. On Oct. 4, a patient in his late 50 ran and was caught on the subway in Seoul still wearing a hospital gown.

Hundreds of passengers on the subway had to be evacuated and health officials had to conduct an investigation.

Currently, there are no government countermeasures but to chase after TB patients who defy quarantine measures.

The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has requested the government and the National Assembly to allow isolation wards to be built in the hospital to prevent TB patients from fleeing, but has been rejected for three consecutive years.

"When a TB patient is hospitalized they are not allowed to leave, however, we do not have isolation wards that prevent such patients from leaving. They are being treated in ordinary wards that have open access," Seo Hye-sook head of the medical treatment department at Seobuk Hospital said.

Under the Fire Services Act, it is mandatory for regular wards to be in an open area, allowing medical staff to constantly watch over patients.

However, most treatments are provided for free and there is a lack of budget and personnel to manage TB patients.

"It wouldn't be a surprise if all medical staff became infected with TB. The working environment here is really bad. When Kim left the hospital during the weekend, there were only two medical staff on duty. We are heavily short of personnel," Seo added.

Only 500 million won in gov't support

The problem comes down to money. The isolation units requested from the government are estimated to cost 4 billion won ($3.5 billion) each, however, it is having trouble coming up with the money.

"We have asked the Seoul city and central governments to pay for 2 billion each to construct the isolation units. The city government came up with the funding but the central government did not. That is the reason we are strongly requesting the National Assembly for the money," a KCDC official said.

There is a shortage of government funds to be appropriated for specialized TB hospitals. According to the KCDC, there are seven hospitals nationwide that provide free TB treatment for families in need. However, the total yearly budget to treat the patients is 500 million won each.

"We have more TB patients than any other OECD nation, but there is a big hole in managing them. Even just one TB patient on the loose could become a grave threat to the public. Facilities to treat TB patients are direly needed but we are having difficulty receiving the funds we need," a KCDC official said.

Source: The Korea Times