Nowon District Mayor Oh Seung-rok Signs Agreement to Secure Additional 24-Hour Public Psychiatric Emergency Beds

On the 5th at 4 PM, Oh Seung-rok, the mayor of Nowon-gu, signed a 24-hour mental emergency public bed service agreement with Nowon Police Station, Nowon Fire Station, and Mindwell Hospital.

This is the second public bed agreement following the one with Dongdaemun Mentos Hospital in January this year, with Mindwell Hospital additionally designated as a '24-hour Nowon-gu Mental Emergency Public Bed Medical Institution.'

In January this year, the district secured the first 24-hour mental emergency public beds within Seoul among autonomous districts, providing rapid emergency hospitalization treatment to residents at risk of self-harm or harm to others due to mental illness.

In particular, it resolved difficulties faced by police officers who had to travel to Gyeonggi-do or wait for daytime hospital operations when beds were unavailable at night or on weekends. This significantly reduced security gaps caused by police officers spending long hours transporting mental patients.

In fact, a survey conducted among police officers responsible for emergency hospitalization at Nowon Police Station showed that 92% responded that the 24-hour public bed operation was very helpful.

The district plans to build a dense community mental health safety net through securing public beds and close cooperation among institutions following the additional public bed agreement with Mindwell Hospital.

Oh Seung-rok, mayor of Nowon-gu, stated, "Through the agreement with Mindwell Hospital, we have established a system to respond more swiftly to residents' mental health crises," adding, "We will continue to do our best to improve the mental health management level of residents and create a safe Nowon where residents can live with peace of mind."