First Public Industrial Accident Rehabilitation Medical Institution by a Basic Local Government
33 Billion Won in National Funding, 1,081 Square Meters in Total Floor Area
Rehabilitation Benefits for 170,000 Workers in Northern and Central North Gyeongsang
A Positive Signal for Addressing Medical Blind Spots and Improving Living Conditions
A new hub for industrial accident rehabilitation treatment has been established in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province.
Kim Jangho, mayor of Gumi, is taking a commemorative photo with officials at the opening ceremony of the Gumi Clinic of the Workers' Welfare Corporation in Indong, Gumi.
On June 12, the city of Gumi held the opening ceremony for the "Gumi Clinic of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service" located on Indonggasan-ro, officially launching public rehabilitation medical services for industrial accident victims. This is the first case nationwide of a public medical institution for industrial accident rehabilitation treatment operated at the level of a basic local government.
Approximately 80 people attended the event to celebrate the opening, including Kim Jangho, mayor of Gumi; Kang Myunggu, member of the National Assembly; Park Jonggil, director of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service; as well as local politicians and representatives from labor and medical sectors.
The Gumi Clinic was established with a total of 3.3 billion won in national funding and has a total floor area of 1,081 square meters (about 327 pyeong).
Specialized personnel, including a rehabilitation medicine specialist, nurses, and occupational therapists, are stationed at the clinic, which began providing outpatient care on April 23. The clinic also plans to gradually expand its medical departments and increase staff according to demand.
The opening of the Gumi Clinic is significant as it marks a turning point in decentralizing the industrial accident treatment infrastructure, which had previously been concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area and major cities, to local regions.
In particular, although Gumi hosts the nation's largest national industrial complex, local workers have faced difficulties accessing specialized industrial accident rehabilitation facilities due to the absence of such institutions in the area.
The Gumi Clinic will serve as a core medical facility capable of meeting the rehabilitation needs of 80,000 workers in the Gumi National Industrial Complex, as well as 170,000 people in the northern and central regions of North Gyeongsang Province, including Gimcheon, Chilgok, and Sangju. For severe industrial accident patients, more specialized treatment is also available through a collaborative care system linked with the Daegu Hospital of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service.
The city of Gumi is currently pursuing industrial and cultural convergence projects such as the "Culture-Led Industrial Complex Development Project," and is focusing efforts on improving residential conditions and expanding public medical infrastructure in line with these initiatives.
The opening of the Gumi Clinic is also part of this vision, as the city has continuously requested the establishment of a rehabilitation treatment center from the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service for several years.
Kim Jangho, mayor of Gumi, stated, "Now that a much-needed public rehabilitation facility has been established in Gumi, home to the nation's first national industrial complex, the city will spare no effort to ensure that industrial accident workers receive timely treatment and can return to health. I hope the Gumi Clinic will become a model case for addressing medical blind spots in local regions."
Kim Jangho, mayor of Gumi, is taking a commemorative photo with Park Jonggil, director of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service, Gumi branch, on the left at the opening ceremony of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service Gumi Clinic.
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