Busan Social Service Institute and Busan City Collaborate for Discovery and Systematic Provision of Customized Social Services
Apply for Social Service Support and Access via QR Code on the Social Service Institute Website
Busan Social Service Institute (Director: Yoo Gyuwon), in collaboration with Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor: Park Hyungjoon), is launching the "Youth Care Connection Project" to provide customized social services and integrated support for isolated and reclusive youth as well as young family caregivers in Busan. For the first time in the region, a unified application window will be established and operated on a regular basis to systematically identify eligible individuals and facilitate service applications.
▲ Planned and promoted as part of the development of social services to address the needs of new vulnerable groups and the implementation of pilot projects under the "1st Busan Metropolitan City Social Service Regional Plan (2024-2028)"
As new and diverse forms of vulnerable groups, which are difficult to be covered by traditional social security systems, are increasing due to the rise of new social risks, early identification and proactive intervention are more important than ever. However, due to the limitations of existing policy frameworks, even conducting surveys to understand the characteristics and status of these groups is challenging.
The number of isolated and reclusive youth in Busan is estimated to be between 7,500 and 31,708, and the number of young family caregivers is estimated at 3,900 (as of 2022), with a trend of steady increase each year.
Busan Social Service Institute and Busan Metropolitan City aim to streamline the identification of eligible individuals and provide more efficient and systematic support and services by establishing a public-private partnership discovery system, opening an online integrated application window, and operating it continuously.
For details on how to apply for the Youth Care Connection pilot project, please refer to the poster.
Starting March 14, by visiting the Busan Social Service Institute website, you can receive guidance on ① registering information of eligible individuals, ② selection of eligible individuals based on self-assessment results, and ③ applying for customized support services.
Through the application window, eligible individuals can self-assess their situations, and the collection of various information for support has laid the foundation for providing customized social services tailored to each individual.
Additionally, the registration of eligible individuals serves as a management support system that enables immediate assistance and will be used as basic data for demand and needs assessment, as well as practical service matching data, in future projects and resource linkages.
The target groups for the project are: isolated and reclusive youth?Busan residents aged 18 to 39 who have no one to rely on in difficult times or stay confined at home or in their rooms; and young family caregivers?Busan residents aged 9 to 39 who live with and are primarily responsible for caring for a sick or mobility-impaired family member.
The Youth Care Connection pilot project provides a variety of social services tailored to eligible individuals, including growth planning and monitoring, self-help groups, relationship recovery, hobby and cultural activities, academic and career exploration, and regular information sharing on youth support policies to help bridge the information gap. In addition, by linking daily care services, youth in need of care can receive diverse support such as in-home care and housekeeping services, meal and nutrition management, hospital accompaniment services, psychological support services, social dining services, and independent living support services.
Furthermore, depending on the conditions of eligible individuals, social services such as scholarship support and psychological counseling will be linked and provided to improve quality of life and address blind spots in welfare.
To provide such a wide range of customized social services, the project will be carried out in cooperation with various partner organizations, and comprehensive and systematic service provision will be actively supported through comprehensive social welfare centers in Busan selected through this pilot project.
Jung Taegi, Director of the Busan City Social Welfare Bureau, said, "With the launch of the Youth Care Connection project, we will provide social services that care for all citizens of Busan, including new vulnerable groups," adding, "We will do our best to build a warm welfare community and a safe Busan through preventive welfare."
Yoo Gyuwon, Director of the Busan Social Service Institute, stated, "The Busan Youth Care Connection pilot project is significant in that it has established a dedicated social service support system and service provision exclusively for new vulnerable youth at the city level," and added, "By continuously building models of resource linkage and collaborative relationships for youth in need of help and care, we will further develop Busan’s unique Youth Care Connection project."
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