Seven More Hospitals Designated This Year, Expanding Choices
Business Agreement Ceremony to Be Held at District Office on July 22
On July 11, Nowon-gu in Seoul announced that it will significantly expand the number of disability-friendly hospitals to improve medical accessibility for people with disabilities.
Disability-friendly hospitals provide various assistive devices to support medical care for people with disabilities, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) tools, and health notebooks. They also receive a disability-friendly hospital plaque and promotional brochures. In addition, the district produces and distributes disability awareness improvement videos and designates specific days for disability-focused medical care at each hospital.
In September last year, Nowon-gu designated two hospitals?Miz I Plaza Obstetrics and Gynecology and Hamkkegeoreum Medical Welfare Social Cooperative Maeul Clinic?as disability-friendly hospitals. This year, seven more hospitals have been selected. The selection process involved a task force (TF) composed of representatives from disability organizations, relevant district departments, and the local medical community, who conducted comprehensive monitoring and accessibility assessments of candidate hospitals.
The seven hospitals newly designated this year are Nowon Family Medicine Clinic, Nowon Hana ENT Clinic, Noh Chunghee Urology Clinic, Gongneung On Dental Clinic, Gongneung Bang Hospital, Miz I Plaza Dalbit Children's Hospital, and Hamkkegeoreum Medical Welfare Social Cooperative (Dental Clinic). The previously designated Miz I Plaza Obstetrics and Gynecology and Hamkkegeoreum Medical Welfare Social Cooperative have also expanded their services to include children's hospitals and dental clinics, respectively.
With these additions, there are now a total of nine disability-friendly hospitals in Nowon-gu, offering a diverse range of specialties including family medicine, otolaryngology (ENT), urology, pediatrics, dentistry, and secondary hospitals. The locations of these hospitals have also expanded to include areas around Suraksan Station, Nowon Station, Junggye Station, Madeul Station, Gongneung Station, and Taereungipgu Station, greatly improving hospital choice and accessibility for people with disabilities.
On July 22, Nowon-gu plans to sign a business agreement at the district office with members of the disability-friendly hospital task force and hospital representatives, aiming to strengthen mutual cooperation on improving the health rights and medical accessibility of people with disabilities, as well as raising disability awareness.
Oh Seungrok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, stated, "Nowon's journey toward a 'barrier-free daily life,' exemplified by the nation's first disability-friendly hair salon, will continue," and added, "We will continue to carefully review all district policies to ensure that there are no restrictions on the rights of people with disabilities."
The scene from the disabled-friendly hospital business agreement ceremony last September. Provided by Nowon-gu.
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