The National Fire Agency on the 4th urged people to check in advance how to use the "Overseas Korean 119 emergency medical consultation service" before going on overseas trips during the summer vacation season.
The Overseas Korean 119 emergency medical consultation service allows not only travelers and citizens staying abroad, but also crew members and passengers on ships and aircraft operating overseas, to receive professional medical consultations from emergency medicine specialists and situation officers at the National Fire Agency Central 119 Emergency Medical Situation Management Center when they experience an emergency overseas, including ▲ first aid methods ▲ medication guidance ▲ how to use local medical institutions.
Consultations are available 24 hours via ▲ phone (+82-44-320-0119) ▲ email (central119ems@korea.kr) ▲ the 119 Safety Report Center website ▲ the KakaoTalk channel (National Fire Agency emergency medical consultation service).
A total of 4,977 consultations were conducted last year through the Overseas Korean 119 emergency medical consultation service. In March this year, during the Middle East war, a crew member of a Korea-flagged ship that had been anchored for an extended period consulted on substitute medicines after running out of regular prescriptions, and in April, for a foreign crew member who suffered a fall accident on a Korea-flagged ship sailing through the Strait of Hormuz, the service provided first aid methods and proper medication guidance.
Kim In-gyun, head of the 119 EMS Division at the National Fire Agency, said, "Overseas, unfamiliar medical environments can make quick decisions difficult in an emergency," and added, "Because Korea's 119 provides 24-hour emergency medical consultation even overseas, we hope people will check how to use it before departure and make active use of it in the event of an emergency."