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- Missing Occupation, Missing Risk: Insights From COVID-19 Case Investigation Data in Busan, South Korea
- Jin-Hwan Kim, Daseul Moon, Changhoon Kim
- J Prev Med Public Health. 2026;59(2):204-210. Published online March 12, 2026
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.3961/jpmph.25.718
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Abstract
Summary
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Supplementary Material - Objectives
This study evaluated the quality and analytic utility of occupational data in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case investigation records from Busan, South Korea, during the period of comprehensive surveillance in 2020–2021, when occupation was inconsistently integrated into routine case reporting despite its importance for infection-risk assessment.
Methods
We analyzed 25 283 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported between February 21, 2020, and December 31, 2021. Occupational information was extracted from investigation forms, epidemiological reports, and electronic medical records. We assessed completeness, internal inconsistencies, and codability to the Korean Standard Classification of Occupations (KSCO), and examined temporal trends across pandemic phases. Descriptive statistics and manual reviews of free-text entries were conducted.
Results
Occupational information was recorded for nearly all investigated cases in 2020–2021 (>99%), but entries were often vague (“unemployed,” “other”) or institutional (“school,” “hospital”), which limited their utility. A minority of entries could be standardized to KSCO 1–3-digit categories because of ambiguous wording or contradictions between occupation and workplace. Although data collection virtually ceased in 2022 and 2023 after individual-level investigations were discontinued, patterns in the 2020–2021 dataset already showed that design flaws in the occupation field reduced analytic value.
Conclusions
Busan’s early COVID-19 surveillance system recorded occupation for nearly all cases but produced limited analyzable information. The disconnect between data entry and analytic usefulness highlights the need for structured, dual occupation–industry coding, searchable picklists, and real-time quality checks so that occupational risk can be systematically identified and incorporated into future pandemic preparedness and response. -
SummaryKorean summary
본 연구는 코로나바이러스감염증-19에 대한 전수감시가 이루어지던 2020-2021년 시기에 부산광역시 확진자 역학조사에 포함된 직업 정보의 질과 그 활용 가능성을 평가했다. 약 2년 동안 약 99% 이상의 확진자에서 직업 정보가 기입되어 있었으나 “무직”, “기타” 등의 모호한 기재나 “학교”, “병원”과 같은 기관 수준의 기재가 빈번해 활용 가능성은 제한적이었다. 자료 입력과 분석적 유용성 간의 괴리는 향후 감염병 대비 및 대응에서 직업적 위험을 체계적으로 파악하고 반영하기 위해, 구조화된 직업-산업 이중 입력 체계, 검색 기반 폐쇄형 입력 기능, 실시간 자료 질 점검 체계 도입이 필요함을 시사한다.Key Message
- Occupation is critical for infection-risk assessment, yet occupation was not systematically collected during the COVID-19 pandemic. - In Busan, although occupational information was recorded for most confirmed COVID-19 cases reported between February 2020 and December 2021, many entries contained workplace names or industry categories instead of specific occupations, limiting standardization and analytic utility. - To improve the quality of occupational data in future pandemic preparedness, dual occupation–industry coding, searchable picklists, and real-time quality checks are needed.
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