South Korea has been praised for its handling of the pandemic
Credit: YONHAP/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
I knew re-entering South Korea wouldn’t be easy. I just didn’t realise it would take over 24 hours to get back home from the moment I landed.
No sooner had I arrived in Seoul than my temperature was checked.
I had to submit multiple quarantine forms asking whether I had symptoms, and that I agreed to quarantine rules during my upcoming 14 days of self-isolation. In recent months, those who have breached compulsory self-isolation have been imprisoned, or even deported.
I was told to throw away my mask and replace it with a tighter one kindly provided.
A quarantine official had my name on a list of incoming passengers from the UK and South Africa, meaning I had to get tested immediately for Covid-19 — despite already producing evidence of a negative test issued in the UK. (If not at the airport, other arrivals must get tested at their local health centres.)
I was escorted by a man in a full hazmat suit onto the windy tarmac to get tested. Officials were clearly taking no chances during the few seconds I lowered my mask while they inserted a swab deep into my nose and throat.
Coronavirus South Korea Spotlight Chart — Cases default
Next, I was required to install a self-quarantine app on my smartphone to diagnose myself three times a day for two weeks.
This alerts authorities of any symptoms such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath. They then called my phone to make sure the number worked.
Finally through immigration, those of us who were tested at the airport were brought to a quarantine facility to await our results, which came out nine hours later.
In my case, I was told my test needed to be re-analysed, which would take another 10 hours. And so I was brought to a negative pressure room to sleep the night, meaning that air inside the room could not flow out.
The test, meals, and quarantine were all free of charge. After lunchtime the next day, I finally received the negative result I was waiting for.
A nurse, again in full PPE gear, came to collect me and gave me gloves to wear. I was then taken by bus back to the airport with others who had just been discharged.
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Police officers were waiting for us and took the register. I was exhausted, but the end was in sight. We were allocated individual quarantine taxis, where the driver was sealed off from the back seats. I was driven to my doorstep, and haven’t left my house since.
Meanwhile, my local district’s health centre calls me daily to check up on my physical and mental condition. I’m only allowed to open the door to pick up online shopping, groceries and food deliveries placed on my doorstep.
I’ve also received a hygiene care kit which includes sanitiser, masks, and medical waste bin bags, the latter to protect waste collectors from potentially coming into contact with the virus.
I’ll be able to throw out my waste after the 14 days are over, when specialised waste disposal workers will come. I’ll then also need to get re-tested for the third time, having come from the UK.
My experience in South Korea was in stark contrast to the one I went through at London Heathrow a few weeks back.
No temperature checks, no screening, no testing, no negative PCR results, no request to present passenger locator form, little social distancing, many passengers with masks under their noses, and some staff without masks.
It was the first time in one year after leaving South Korea that I felt exposed to the virus.
The measures taken in South Korea may seem excessive, but the view here is that they are necessary to contain the spread of the virus. I am grateful to live in a country where the government cares for those it governs.
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