President Park Geun-hye delivers a congratulatory speech during the opening ceremony of the 2015 Seoul International Council of Nurses Conference on June 19.
“The threat of new kinds of contagious diseases is not something that is restricted to one country, but a common task of human beings that requires joint efforts by the international community.”
President Park Geun-hye stressed that the government will keep strengthened measures against the MERS virus until the deadly disease is brought to an end, as well as keep working together with the international community. Her remarks came during the opening ceremony of the 2015 Seoul International Council of Nurses (ICN) Conference held at the Olympic Park in southeastern Seoul on June 19.
President Park Geun-hye (fourth from left) and other participants watch a video during the opening ceremony of the 2015 Seoul ICN Conference on June 19.
“Lots of nurses are working hard with a firm sense of duty to take care of MERS-infected patients as we speak now,” the president said. “They, armed with heavy anti-contagion gears, risk being infected themselves only to save the lives of patients. Trusting and relying on these nurses, the people can endure all these hardships, surely.”
“The nurses are our true guardian angels. I’d like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to you all for your service. Thank you,” she continued.
“The outbreak of the MERS virus taught us the need that the government should put in place a thorough system to cope with new types of contagious diseases. We will inspect the overall system of responding to such contagious viruses and also will increase the investment in manpower, facilities and equipment to properly deal with this kind of crisis. Also, we will actively cooperate with the international community in bringing the MERS crisis to an end as quickly as possible.”
President Park Geun-hye (second from right) gives applause to global nurses as a token of appreciation for their efforts, during the opening ceremony of the 2015 Seoul ICN Conference on June 19.
“Korea now faces the spread of MERS. The nation is not in such a dire situation as when the Ebola virus broke out, but we need to stop the spread of the life-threatening disease as effectively and swiftly as possible, easing public concerns,” said ICN President Judith Shamian.
The ICN hosts the conference biennially. This year, the Seoul conference invites approximately 7,000 nurses and experts involved in the health care industry from 135 countries worldwide.
By Jeon Han, Sohn JiAe
Korea.net Staff Writers
Photos: Cheong Wa Dae
hanjeon@korea.kr