Disaster medical response system in Korea

Disasters have frequently been a problem in Korea. Many initiatives have been carried out to mitigate this problem and to respond to disasters properly. The National Medical Emergency Center organized the Disaster Medical Response Center, which operates 24 hours a day. Regional emergency medical centers were designated as hospitals that receive disaster victims. Along with the designated disaster hospitals, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, city and district governments, and community health centers were all assigned standard roles to carry out in case of disasters. Disaster medical assistance teams were developed to respond to disaster events in their regions. This system has enabled a more rapid and systematic response to disaster events, and has standardized disaster-related medical equipment and vehicles to ensure the proper treatment of disaster victims. Although many valuable systems have been developed to respond to disasters, practical training within each institution and community-wide team training are still lacking; therefore, the government needs to further develop and support such programs.

Hospital disaster plan and disaster medicine

In general, the disaster rescue team should do their work within 1 to 2 hours after disaster, and disaster medical assistance team (DMAT) should care the victims at disaster site within 3 to 6 hours. Since about 10 years ago, world health organization, world meteorological organization, and world congress of disaster emergency medicine emphasized that each countries should complete the disaster plan on 'chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, explosives' (CBRNE) disaster. After these warnings, the most of countries has strengthened the hospital disaster plan, and also organized disaster services system such as DMAT, hazardous material information system, and others. In Korea, the most of tertiary hospitals can not operate hospital disaster plan effectively, and the government did not support hospitals on disaster plan politically and financially. As a result, only a small number of hospitals is operating DMAT, and a few hospital completed CBRNE disaster preparedness such as disaster drill, personal protective equipments, decontamination set. The poison information center that control information on hazardous material is not established yet, and most physicians can not get information on chemicals, biologics and other hazardous materials when CBRNE disaster occur. To operate effective disaster plan, each hospitals should modernize the disaster plan on internal disaster, external disaster, and CBRNE disaster. The government should support hospitals to keep DMAT and special preparedness on CBRNE disaster. When CBRNE disaster strikes, the poison information center should expand their capability to provide information on the various kinds of hazardous materials.