Starting Next Month, Here Is The Strictness Of The COVID-19 Vaccination Process In South Korea

Illustration of COVID-19 vaccination. (Steven Cornfield / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - If nothing changes, South Korea will start a COVID-19 vaccination program next month. Meanwhile, the first batch of vaccines is expected to arrive in the coming weeks.

Using the COVAX service initiated by WHO, South Korea will receive a shipment of COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer in early February.

"The first shipment of Pfizer vaccine for 50,000 people is likely to arrive in early February," said local health authorities, reported koreatimes.

The South Korean government plans to divide the vaccination program into several stages. Each of them will be managed by the relevant agencies. Initially, South Korea planned a vaccination program for the end of February.

However, this plan is accelerated to the start of the month, with attention focused on the availability of vaccines ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday which falls on February 11.

Vaccination chain

Given that the vaccine used is the Pfizer RNA (mRNA) vaccine, South Korea has a long and tight chain of vaccination programs. A cold chain system should be established not only for distribution, but also in every vaccination center.

The Pfizer vaccine can be the most difficult to treat, as it must be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius and stable. Meanwhile, other vaccines, such as Moderna and Janssen, only need to be stored at temperatures of minus 20 degrees Celsius.

Vaccine illustration. (Sam Moqadam / Unsplash)

The process itself starts with the approval of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. If approved, the vaccine will be shipped to South Korea by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Upon arrival in South Korea, the Ministry of Defense will manage storage and distribution to 250 vaccination centers throughout Gingseng Country. This vaccination center is also set up directly and supervised by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Safety, in collaboration with local governments.

The Ministry of Home Affairs and Safety will install one vaccination site per city, district and district. As well as two in each region with a population of more than 500 thousand people.

With the prediction that the location of the vaccination will be visited by 600 people per day, the place must be well ventilated, large enough to maintain social distancing, to be equipped with an independent power plant to store vaccines safely.

Currently, the Ministry of Home Affairs is reviewing 150 potential facilities as possible places for vaccination.

"Currently, we have 93 gyms, 30 cinemas, 12 medical institutions, 10 parks and five government centers on our candidate list. After further discussions with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), we will announce a detailed list in advance. next week, "said South Korean Ministry of Interior and Safety Deputy spokesman Park Jong-hyun