[Seoul District News] Dobong-gu Care SOS Center Selects 27 Local Integrated Care Service Providers, Signs Business Agreement · Establishes District Selection Criteria, Plans to Provide 10 Major Care Services by July 2024 ... Yongsan-gu 1-Person Household Social Network Formation Program Receives Positive Response
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dobong-gu (Mayor Oh Eon-seok) signed a business agreement on the 21st at the district office CR Hall with 27 integrated care service providers (11 new, 16 renewed) for the provision of care SOS center integrated care services.
According to the agreement, the 27 integrated care service providers in the region will provide integrated care services to eligible recipients from August 1 this year to July 31, 2024.
Prior to this agreement, Dobong-gu put great effort into selecting providers by supplementing the agreement checklist prepared by Seoul City to provide high-quality care services and establishing its own selection criteria.
The ‘Care SOS Center’ is a ‘Community Integrated Care Center’ that fills care gaps to help overcome temporary crisis situations such as sudden illness or accidents.
The Care SOS Center provides 10 major care services including ▲temporary home care (care provided at home by care workers) ▲accompaniment support (accompanying essential outings) ▲meal support (lunchbox delivery) ▲short-term facility (short-term facility admission support) ▲housing convenience (home cleaning, disinfection, repairs), etc.
The service targets middle-aged and elderly people aged 50 and over who need care, and people with disabilities aged 6 and over who have no caregivers and do not use public care systems.
Not only low-income groups such as recipients and near-poverty groups but also residents with an income below 85% of the median income (about 1.65 million KRW monthly for a single-person household) can use the care services free of charge within the annual limit. Applications can be made through care managers (social welfare or nursing public officials) at each neighborhood community center.
Oh Eon-seok, Mayor of Dobong-gu, said, “Together with the twenty-seven care service providers who promoted this business agreement, we will build a more solid community welfare network and integrated care service system.”
In May, the "Healthy Single" program for young single-person households was held in the kitchen of the Yongsan-gu Women's Plaza.
Yongsan-gu (Mayor Park Hee-young) is the only autonomous district in Seoul selected as a pilot district by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and its ‘Support Project for Social Network Formation of Single-Person Households’ is receiving positive responses.
The district has invested a total project cost of 104 million KRW in the ‘Support Project for Social Network Formation of Single-Person Households’ and has been providing customized support programs for single-person households by life cycle from April to the end of the year.
Programs that have ended or are scheduled include a total of nine fields such as ▲strengthening the original family system ▲self-management education (diet, health) ▲kimchi sharing ▲Together, Value ▲A Good Day for a Picnic ▲individual and group counseling support ▲Fun Fun Our Meetings (self-help groups), etc.
As of the fourth week of July, a total of 209 people have participated and benefited from social network formation. The project is commissioned and operated by the Yongsan-gu Family Center.
A Family Center official said, “Some participants of the middle-aged single-person household hobby program ‘Together, Value’ formed 3 to 4 groups after the course ended,” introducing it as “an excellent case where social networks were formed based on hobbies.”
The Family Center is planning about 10 programs from September to the end of the year, including support education for foreign single-person households and youth preparing for independence (children aging out of care). Due to the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases, non-face-to-face operation is also being considered.
Applications for participation in the ‘Social Network Formation for Single-Person Households’ program and other detailed information can be found on the district Family Center website.
Park Hee-young, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, “Participants in customized programs for single-person households with different needs depending on age and situation show high satisfaction,” and added, “We hope many people will be interested in programs where they can have new experiences and meet friends.”
According to Statistics Korea, as of 2020, there are 36,881 single-person households in Yongsan-gu, accounting for about 39% of all households. The composition of single-person households is diverse, including youth, middle-aged, elderly, divorced or bereaved, and youth preparing for independence.
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