Establishment of a Comprehensive Plan for Enhancing Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities
Comprehensive Plan for Enhancing Convenience for Persons with Disabilities Established... 15 Projects in 3 Areas Including 8 New Initiatives to be Implemented
920 Billion KRW Allocated for Disability Welfare Budget in 2023, a 19.7% Increase Compared to Last Year
Full Effort to Build Various Customized Infrastructures Such as Electric Mobility Device Driving Practice Grounds, Second Disability-Friendly Hair Salon, and Second Lifelong Education Center for Persons with Developmental Disabilities
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) is implementing various projects to make the district a better city for persons with disabilities.
The registered population of persons with disabilities in Nowon-gu is approximately 26,600, accounting for 5.3% of the total population of the district, making it the second highest among Seoul’s autonomous districts. Including cohabiting family members, about 65,000 people, or 13% of the residents, are directly affected by disability welfare policies.
This year, the district has allocated 92 billion KRW for disability welfare, a 19.7% increase from last year. Nowon-gu’s disability policy vision is ‘THE Comfortable Nowon.’ To ensure safe and convenient living for both persons with and without disabilities, 15 projects across 3 areas will be promoted under a four-year comprehensive plan to enhance convenience for persons with disabilities.
The three areas are ▲expansion of infrastructure to improve convenience levels in public and private facilities ▲technical support for installing convenience facilities for persons with disabilities and improvement of social awareness ▲monitoring to enhance the perceived effectiveness of convenience facility installation and disability sensitivity.
Full Effort to Expand Infrastructure for Disability Convenience Reflecting Diverse Needs
This year, particular focus is placed on expanding infrastructure to enhance convenience for persons with disabilities. With aging and an increasing disabled population, safety accidents related to electric mobility devices are also on the rise. To prevent such accidents, the district plans to establish an ‘Electric Mobility Device Driving Practice Ground for Persons with Disabilities’ in the second half of this year.
The ‘Disability-Friendly Hair Salon,’ which opened in October last year, offers affordable prices and customized convenience facilities such as a shampoo dog system, attracting an average of 7 to 8 visitors daily and maintaining steady popularity. This year, a second branch will be established with the goal of operating regionally in the future.
Expansion of BF (Barrier Free) certification will also be pursued. This certification evaluates facilities from the design to completion stages to ensure that all people, including persons with disabilities, can access, use, and move around without inconvenience. Currently, public institutions constructing new buildings are required to obtain certification, but private facilities not subject to mandatory certification have shown low performance.
Accordingly, starting this year, Nowon-gu will be the first autonomous district in Seoul to fully support the certification acquisition fees for private buildings that voluntarily obtain BF certification despite not being required to do so. The district will also publicly disclose private buildings with BF certification and award commendations to contributors promoting BF activation.
Additionally, plans are in place to improve inconveniences faced by persons with disabilities. These include establishing walking environments for the visually impaired, managing parking spaces exclusively for persons with disabilities, and supporting the installation of ramps in small-scale (under 300㎡) daily life facilities such as restaurants, pharmacies, and convenience stores.
Continuous Technical Support for Installation of Disability Convenience Facilities and Improvement of Social Awareness
The ‘Disability Convenience Enhancement Technical Support Center’ located in Wolgye-dong will continue to operate. The center conducts inspections related to the installation of convenience facilities for persons with disabilities and aims to foster social understanding for facility expansion. Earlier this year, a video on Nowon-gu’s disability-friendly policies, produced in collaboration with the YouTuber ‘WeeRacle,’ who has 500,000 subscribers, was broadcast.
Mobile disability awareness improvement and disability sensitivity education will also be conducted. Development is underway for participatory disability awareness content suitable for children’s perspectives, where persons with developmental disabilities perform their own stories and professional instructors provide explanations. This will be initially implemented in local daycare centers, kindergartens, and elementary schools to prevent discrimination against persons with disabilities.
Ongoing Monitoring Activities to Improve and Inspect Disability Convenience Facilities
The ‘Disability-Friendly City Monitoring Team’ consisting of 15 members, active since May last year, will continue monitoring local facilities and various projects this year to identify policy agendas. The monitoring team, composed of persons with disabilities and disability welfare experts, has successfully led the installation of safety fences and disability facility guide signs.
As part of providing employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, the Disability Convenience Enhancement Technical Support Center selects professional monitoring personnel who are responsible for on-site inspections.
Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, stated, “Creating a disability-friendly city hinges on customized policies and infrastructure development. We will carefully consider the perspectives of persons with disabilities to ensure they can live confidently as members of society.”
Seocho-gu Offers Customized ‘Youth Seocho Health Checkup’ Once a Year for Single-Person Households Aged 19 to 34, Free of Charge Starting This Year
Seocho-gu (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) is strengthening customized health policies that care for the health and mental well-being of young single-person households as the new year begins.
First, the district will conduct the ‘Single-Person Household Youth Seocho Health Checkup’ for young single-person households aged 19 to 34.
The checkup includes 48 items such as ▲liver and kidney function, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and anemia ▲hepatitis A ▲thyroid function (T3, TSH, Free T4) ▲cancer markers (men: 4 types including colorectal, pancreatic, liver, and prostate cancer; women: 5 types including colorectal, pancreatic, liver, ovarian, and breast cancer) ▲rubella (women) ▲syphilis and AIDS tests ▲urinalysis ▲chest radiography. The checkup is free once a year.
In particular, the district expects to improve the accuracy and reliability of the checkup service and aid early detection of lung diseases such as pneumonia and pneumothorax through the introduction of digital diagnostic radiology equipment and the use of an artificial intelligence (AI) medical image analysis support system.
Post-checkup management is also carefully handled. Young single-person household participants can have one-on-one customized consultations with the examining doctor. Those with abnormal findings will be guided to specialized medical institutions, and regular health management is available at the Metabolic Syndrome Management Center. Additionally, various health information such as smoking cessation counseling is provided.
Those wishing to undergo the checkup should fast from 10 p.m. the night before and bring their ID and resident registration certificate to the Seocho-gu Public Health Center Health Checkup Center or Bangbae Health Branch.
Furthermore, the district pays attention to the mental health of young people experiencing psychological difficulties such as depression and stress. Services include ▲free counseling at the Mental Health Center by psychiatrists and mental health professionals ▲up to three free mental health checkups and counseling sessions linked with regional psychiatric clinics.
For more details, contact the Seocho-gu Public Health Center Health Checkup Center or Bangbae Health Branch.
Meanwhile, the district provides specialized customized checkup services across all age groups, including premarital and prenatal health checkups for couples preparing for marriage and pregnancy, ‘Happy Seocho Premium Health Checkup’ for middle-aged adults aged 40 and above, and chronic disease management health checkups for seniors aged 65 and above.
Jeon Seong-su, Mayor of Seocho-gu, said, “This service is expected to serve as a health guardian for young single-person households who tend to neglect their health due to irregular lifestyles. We will continue to do our best to contribute to residents’ health promotion and create a healthy community.”
Gwangjin-gu Produces Two General Epidemiological Investigators... 13th and 22nd Among 36 Graduates Nationwide from City, County, and District Governments Since January Last Year
As the number of severe COVID-19 patients rises to the 600s for the first time in about eight months, Gwangjin-gu (Mayor Kim Kyung-ho) has produced two general epidemiological investigators.
An ‘epidemiological investigator’ is a person appointed to handle tasks related to infectious disease epidemiological investigations. They play a role in quickly identifying infection sources when infectious diseases occur to prevent the spread and outbreak of diseases.
According to the revised ‘Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act’ in 2020, city, county, and district governments with populations over 100,000 are required to assign at least one epidemiological investigator.
Since the announcement of the ‘Regulations on Epidemiological Investigator Training’ by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency in January 2022, Gwangjin-gu has produced two general epidemiological investigators, numbered 13 and 22, among 36 graduates nationwide from city, county, and district governments.
The two, appointed as trainee epidemiological investigators in February and August 2021, systematically responded to COVID-19 cluster outbreaks and crisis situations in vulnerable facilities, conducted epidemiological investigations on legally designated infectious diseases such as waterborne and foodborne infections, and engaged in field-centered job training.
They completed a three-week basic training and two ongoing training sessions, submitted epidemiological investigation result reports, infectious disease surveillance analysis reports, and quarterly activity reports to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, and passed academic reviews.
After about a year of this process, two epidemiological investigators have finally been produced in Gwangjin-gu.
Kim Kyung-ho, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, “With epidemiological investigators, more rapid and professional analysis of infection sources is now possible. We will do our best to proactively respond to new and imported infectious diseases and ensure systematic management.”
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