Gangnam-gu 'Our Neighborhood Care Team' Supports Over 5,700 Vulnerable Households

Over 20,000 Visits in a Year to Elderly Living Alone, Single-Parent Families, and Severely Disabled Individuals... Providing Customized Welfare Services

Segok-dong Our Neighborhood Care Team

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gangnam-gu (Mayor Jeong Soon-gyun) is leading efforts to eliminate welfare blind spots by operating the ‘Uri Dongne Dolbomdan’ (Our Neighborhood Care Team), which visited over 5,700 vulnerable households more than 20,000 times throughout 2019.

Composed of 55 local residents, the ‘Uri Dongne Dolbomdan’ regularly visits households in need of care within the community, such as elderly living alone, single-parent families, and people with severe disabilities, to check on their well-being and prevent solitary deaths.

These households can receive customized welfare services after consultation with welfare planners.

Last year, while operating in 12 neighborhoods within the district, the Uri Dongne Dolbomdan made over 12,000 welfare check calls to more than 5,700 vulnerable households and provided support items such as side dishes to approximately 4,700 of these households.

They also carried out various activities for elderly living alone, including hairdressing services, food markets, and autumn outings.

Im Dong-ho, Director of Welfare Policy, stated, “On the 21st of last month, the Uri Dongne Dolbomdan discovered an elderly person with a physical disability who had collapsed in Irwon 2-dong and promptly transported them to the emergency room, preventing a solitary death. This year, we plan to expand the program to all 22 neighborhoods to establish a more comprehensive welfare safety net.”