The recent spread of tuberculosis at a postnatal care facility in Seoul is a reminder of the inherent danger of such facilities where, in a confined setting, an infection can quickly spread.

A nursing aide continued to work at a postnatal care facility in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, for about one month even though she was suspected of having tuberculosis. She came into contact with 120 infants before she began tuberculosis treatment on Aug. 19. Thirteen infants were confirmed to have latent tuberculosis while 57 infants, those under 12 weeks old, are too young to be tested yet. Six are waiting for tests while 44 infants have tested negative.

What is worrisome is that this is but the latest incident of tuberculosis spread at a postnatal care facility with several cases having been reported this year.

Postnatal care facilities are a relatively recent phenomenon that are quickly replacing the at-home care once typically provided by the new mother’s own mother. Traditionally, a new mother was not allowed to leave her room and visitors were forbidden for the first 21 days after birth. In the old days, red chilies and pieces of charcoal strung on a rope for a boy and just charcoal on a rope for a girl were hung over the main gate to signal the arrival of a newborn. There was ancient wisdom in this practice as visitors, seeing these ropes, stayed away, potentially reducing the chances of a disease passing on to the baby.

These days, a new mother and her baby are likely to head straight from the hospital to a postnatal care facility. The aim of this arrangement is so that the new moms can rest. Indeed, the newborns are kept in separate nursery units so that the mothers can sleep through the night.

As convenient as this arrangement may be, it greatly increases the risk of infants catching infectious diseases. According to a recent Health and Welfare Ministry report, the number of infectious diseases at postnatal care facilities increased 5.5-fold between 2013 and June 2015. Cases of respiratory syncytial virus infection, which can cause lung and respiratory problems, jumped 32-fold from 3 to 96, while common cold showed a 5.6-fold increase from 11 to 57. Cases of rotavirus infection, which causes gastroenteritis, also increased from 15 to 41.

Also troubling is the large increase in the violations of laws and regulations by postnatal care facilities, prime among them employment of underqualified staff and the failure to conduct infectious disease prevention training. Indeed, it should not come as a surprise that cases of infectious diseases at the country’s 600 postnatal care facilities are on the rise.

In the meantime, there are calls for public postnatal care facilities that would make such care more widely available at cheaper rates. So far, the Health and Welfare Ministry has been resistant to the idea, and rightly so. As the ministry points out, the greater possibility of infectious disease outbreaks at postnatal care facilities and safety concerns, such as fire, must be carefully considered before public facilities are established.

More importantly, child development experts tell us that the first few days of life of an infant offer the optimum opportunity for bonding with the parents. This is when a baby and the parents should spend as much time together as possible. Perhaps more parents should take charge of caring for their babies, rather than relegating their care to staff at postnatal care centers.