The Ministry of Health and Welfare prepared a plan to improve working conditions in the summer to reduce fatigue of medical staff working in Covid-19 screening clinics in hot weather.

The ministry plans to reduce the regular work period of dispatched personnel by one week from the initial one month.

Facility operators will adjust the working hours and breaks at their discretion. For the workers in outdoor facilities, including screening clinics, separate working hours and rest standards have been in place since June 10 in consideration of the heat wave.

In the case of places where the workload has increased sharply, the ministry plans to support the shift for the existing workforce, such as nurses, within the extent of one-third of the recruited workforce by the Central Disaster Management Headquarters. The headquarters had recruited 2,545 nurses and 792 nursing aides as of June 16.

The authorities have broadened the options of equipment by distributing extra surgical gown sets, including face shields, N95 masks, gloves, and surgical gowns that are easy to wear, remove, and highly breathable.

The ministry is also supplying cooling vests to those who work at outdoor screening clinics and installing air conditioners at the indoor facilities.