1. Reasons for Amendment

According to the amendment of the Enforcement Rules of the Medical Service Act (Ministry of Health and Welfare Decree No. 477, February 3, 2017), the installation of ventilation systems in medical facilities was made mandatory, but specific ventilation standards were provided in guidelines. In response to the needs arising from the COVID-19 response and the necessity for updating certain facility standards within medical institutions, various improvements have been made in the operation of the system to enhance the efficiency of infectious disease control. Simultaneously, efforts have been undertaken to establish a foundation for promoting home nursing care and transition the subjects of the nursing national examination to an integrated examination.

2. Major Provisions

A. Relaxation of criteria for nurses providing home nursing (Article 24)

1) Include nurses who have completed the education course specified by the Minister of Health and Welfare

B. Change of subject for national nurse examination ([Table 1-3] amended)

1) Change of seven major subjects, excluding health and medicine-related laws and regulations, to nursing science

C. Establishment of ventilation standards for inpatient rooms ([Table 4] amended)

1) Installation of ventilation systems that allow for rapid air exchange within inpatient rooms (including intensive care units) with a requirement of at least 2 air exchanges per hour

2) If hand-washing facilities are installed in the restroom in the inpatient room toilets, it shall be recognized as having installed hand washing facilities within the inpatient room 

D. Raising the installation standards for negative-pressure isolation rooms ([Table 4] amended)

1) Inpatient rooms in comprehensive hospitals with 300 beds or more are required to install negative-pressure isolation rooms, comprising at least 1% of the licensed bed capacity

2) Introduction of a new legal basis for the establishment of multi-occupancy rooms in negative pressure isolation rooms

E. Raising the standards for installing isolation rooms in nursing hospitals ([Table 4] amended)

1) Install at least one isolation room in nursing hospitals with more than 100 beds

2) Install at least 3 isolation rooms in nursing hospitals with more than 300 beds

F. Obligatory installation of single rooms in intensive care units ([Table 4] amended)

1) For general hospitals with more than 500 beds, more than 20% of all intensive care unit beds must be installed as single rooms.