[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] The Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 25th that the Gwangju Social Service Agency Buk-gu Comprehensive Home Care Center will officially begin operations starting with its opening ceremony on the 26th.
The Comprehensive Home Care Center is a key institution in community integrated care that directly provides various home care services for the elderly, including long-term care.
So far, with the advent of an aging society, the increase in demand for elderly care and the diversification of user needs have raised the necessity for providing integrated care services. Additionally, issues such as low service quality, lack of publicness, and poor treatment of workers have been continuously pointed out due to care services being mainly provided by the private sector.
Gwangju City, through the Gwangju Social Service Agency, has established the Comprehensive Home Care Center to provide various services such as home-visit care and elderly care in an integrated and connected manner within a single institution. Furthermore, it strengthens the public nature of care by discovering vulnerable groups and those in blind spots of care services.
Service providers (care workers) are directly employed by the Social Service Agency, with guaranteed retirement age to enhance employment stability for workers. Along with this, the current hourly wage-based payment system for workers will be improved, and the introduction of a monthly salary system will be gradually considered.
In addition, through the operation of the Comprehensive Home Care Center, a standard model for home care services will be presented to improve the quality of care services even in the private sector.
Starting with the Buk-gu Comprehensive Home Care Center, Gwangju City and the Gwangju Social Service Agency plan to expand the operation of Comprehensive Home Care Centers to a total of five locations, one in each autonomous district, including the opening of the Seo-gu Comprehensive Home Care Center in December 2022.
The scope of services will be expanded from long-term home care to care for persons with disabilities, and the number of service providers will increase from the current 15 to about 100 according to service demand.
Service applications can be made by visiting or calling the Buk-gu Comprehensive Home Care Center.
The center provides home-visit care and home-visit bathing services to elderly individuals who have received long-term care grades, and offers customized elderly care services such as household and physical activity support to those aged 65 or older who require care.
Additionally, in cases where care gaps occur due to COVID-19 or other reasons, emergency care services are provided.
Meanwhile, the Gwangju Social Service Agency is a public institution established by Gwangju City that operates national and public social welfare facilities directly, installs Comprehensive Home Care Centers and provides home care services, and supports private social service providers.
Since the completion of its establishment in July amid the COVID-19 crisis causing care gaps, it has been fulfilling its role as a public service provider by supporting emergency care services for children, the elderly, and others.
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