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Busan Metropolitan City Launches “Private Advisory Group for Infection-Safe Care”: Public-Private Partnership to Safeguard Infection Safety in Care Settings

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that it held the inauguration ceremony for the “Private Advisory Group for Infection-Safe Care” at 4:30 p.m. on March 18 in a conference room on the 26th floor of City Hall to strengthen infection control capabilities in facilities vulnerable to infectious diseases.

This inauguration ceremony was organized in response to the growing importance of managing infection-vulnerable facilities amid an aging population, with the goal of incorporating private-sector expertise into public administration to establish a Busan-style public-private cooperative system for infection control.

The city formed the advisory group by selecting private-sector experts through an open recruitment process and recommendations from medical institutions to build a support system for strengthening infection control capacity in vulnerable facilities.

Selected personnel underwent two rounds of capacity-building training on August 26 and September 4, 2025, and were subsequently appointed after completing a practice-oriented training process that included participation in existing on-site advisory activities conducted by designated responsible medical institutions from September to November.

The advisory group consists of 26 infection control experts from designated responsible medical institutions, including Pusan National University Hospital and Busan Medical Center, as well as private hospitals.

The advisory group will conduct on-site visits to infection-vulnerable facilities and provide customized consultations tailored to the specific characteristics of each facility. In particular, it plans to move beyond simple inspection methods to deliver practical support for improvement and field-centered activities, thereby addressing blind spots in infection prevention.

In the first year of the project in 2024, on-site consultations were conducted for long-term care hospitals and senior care facilities in collaboration with designated responsible medical institutions (Pusan National University Hospital and Busan Medical Center). Comparisons before and after consultation showed a 9.6 percent improvement in infection control implementation rates across areas such as infection control system establishment, staff training, and management of residents and visitors.

In 2025, the project was expanded to include day and night care facilities, with trained private experts participating. As a result, an additional 10 percent improvement in infection control implementation rates was achieved compared to the previous year.

Based on these achievements, the inauguration ceremony was held to fully establish an infection control system centered on private experts and to further strengthen the foundation for public-private cooperation.

In addition, the advisory group will serve as preliminary consultants and evaluation committee members for the “Infection-Safe Care Certification System,” which is being promoted for the first time nationwide by Busan Metropolitan City. In this role, they will objectively assess infection control levels and provide professional advice on field-oriented infection control checklists and manuals.

Busan Metropolitan City is operating the “Busan Infection-Safe Care Certification System” to support the establishment of autonomous infection control systems in vulnerable facilities. Following the certification of three senior care facilities in a pilot project last year, the city plans to expand the program with a target of certifying seven facilities this year.

Cho Gyu-yul, Director General of the Citizen Health Bureau, stated, “Collaboration with private experts who possess extensive field experience will serve as an opportunity to elevate our city’s capacity to respond to infectious diseases to the next level,” adding, “Through a robust public-private cooperation network, we will build a ‘safe city, Busan,’ protected from infectious diseases.”