국가별 코로나19 대응을 위한 병상 확보 방안

Abstract

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has placed pressure on health resource capacities. Many countries responded with various measures to control the resource shortage. This study aims to examine the current status of the resources capacity focusing on hospital beds (public beds) and review the response policies to tackle the COVID-19 crisis in major countries (mainly Korea, Japan, and Taiwan). This study searched publicly available official reports, documents, and statistics from the government, public agencies, and related institutions. The pre-crisis bed capacities differed across countries. In Korea and Taiwan, the total number of beds was higher than the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average, but the number of public beds was lower than the average. In Japan, the total number of beds, and public beds were higher than the average. To respond to COVID-19, governments have implemented various strategies and policies to manage and mitigate the impact of the crisis on the healthcare system. some policies to boost bed capacity were very similar. The three countries have designated COVID-19 units and expanded hospitals. The collaboration between the health authority and the private hospitals might have been the key to successfully addressing the crisis of COVID-19 given the shortage of hospital beds. Further, the policies of financial incentives and legal regulation under governance were implemented to respond to the surge in demand for care. In light of the prolonged pandemic, timely response policies and the monitoring system of COVID-19 health resources are necessary.