[One Day Ten Thousand Steps, One Day One Thousand Characters] Frailty Prevention Project in Busan Entering a Super-Aged Society

Busan entered a super-aged society in 2021, with the population aged 65 and over exceeding 20%. Busan is the first among the seven major metropolitan cities nationwide to reach this stage. The area experiencing the most severe population decline is the original downtown. Among the 89 local governments nationwide designated as population decline areas by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety in 2021, three autonomous districts in Busan?Yeongdo-gu, Seo-gu, and Dong-gu?are all original downtown areas.

Busan City and Busan National University Hospital have decided to promote a frailty prevention project called ‘Body Up, Mind Up, Relationship Up’ to support healthy aging and social networks for the elderly. Frailty is a condition where degenerative changes in organs or tissues progress significantly with aging, making it difficult to maintain homeostasis due to decreased function, resulting in physical weakness.

Busan’s ‘Frailty Prevention Project’ targets citizens aged 65 and older at village health centers, which have high utilization rates and accessibility for the elderly population. The project provides ▲appropriate exercise prescriptions and diet plans through physical function assessments (frailty screening tests) ▲depression screening and linkage to related organizations ▲programs supporting the recovery of social networks. Following the signing of the ‘Frailty Prevention Cooperation System Establishment Agreement’ on September 27, Busan City will use 74 village health centers, which are community-based health promotion institutions, as hubs to provide physical function assessments (frailty screening tests), elderly depression tests, and social network assessments, supporting healthy aging and social network formation through customized interventions. Busan National University Hospital will support training for village health center staff by rehabilitation medicine specialists and intervention programs, and will continuously provide tailored support through data analysis.

A scene from the village health center promotional video
[Source=Busan City]

Starting with this agreement, the city will pilot the frailty prevention project from October at four village health centers: Yeongju 1-dong in Jung-gu, Uam-dong in Nam-gu, Myeongjang 1-dong in Dongnae-gu, and Geoje 4-dong in Yeonje-gu. Next year, the project will expand to all 74 village health centers. Since 36.2% of the elderly population aged 65 and over are registered and managed at village health centers, these centers are expected to serve not only as providers of basic health promotion programs but also as platforms for elderly health management.

Village health centers aim to improve residents’ health levels and reduce health disparities between regions. They eliminate the inconvenience of having to travel far to public health centers, allowing anyone to receive health consultations near their homes, make neighbors, and build healthy communities. Village health centers employ village nurses, village health activists, and public health center staff who provide health consultations, chronic disease registration and management, and operate health communities. Residents can receive body composition tests, screenings and preventive consultations for dementia, depression, hypertension, diabetes, and more, as well as regular management. Additionally, various clubs are operated, including walking clubs, dance clubs (Zumba, line dance, Uri dance, etc.), health clubs (diabetes classes, hypertension management, dementia prevention, straight back exercises, Tai Chi, Taekwondo, etc.), and hobby clubs (laughter therapy, guitar classes, ocarina, Korean language classes, etc.). Busan currently has 58 village health centers and plans to increase this number to 250 by 2040.

Meanwhile, in October, ten festivals prepared by Busan City and its districts and counties will be held weekly across Busan with diverse content. The ‘Busan International Rock Festival,’ hosted by Busan City, will take place over two days on October 7 and 8 at Samnak Ecological Park. Starting with the Busan Jagalchi Festival in Jung-gu on the 5th, the districts and counties will host ▲the 31st Yeongdo Bridge Festival ▲the 29th Dongnae Eupseong History Festival ▲the 10th Nakdonggang Gupo Ferry Festival ▲the 25th UN Peace Festival ▲the 20th Chinatown Cultural Festival ▲the 20th Sasang Riverside Festival ▲the 14th Busan Mackerel Festival ▲and the 13th Gamcheon Culture Village Alley Festival.