Ministry of Health and Welfare selects Seoul National University Hospital, National Center for Mental Health, and others in first round
Comprehensive care from emergency admission to post-discharge management
391 beds to be operated initially... Expansion to 1,600 beds by the end of next year
Going forward, there will be new opportunities for patients with acute mental illnesses who are at high risk of self-harm or harming others to receive more specialized and intensive treatment.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on December 29 that it has designated 26 medical institutions nationwide-including 23 tertiary general hospitals and 3 national psychiatric hospitals-as intensive care hospitals for acute mental illness, ahead of the implementation of the "Acute Mental Illness Intensive Care Hospital Designation System" next year.
Patients with acute mental illnesses require immediate hospitalization and intensive treatment, but until now, appropriate responses have been difficult due to shortages of personnel and facilities.
Intensive care hospitals are hospital-level medical institutions that have strengthened requirements for personnel and facilities to provide timely and intensive treatment for acute mental illness patients, including those at risk of self-harm or harming others, first-episode patients with high treatment effectiveness and priority, and those subject to emergency hospitalization. To support this, the government established a legal basis in November and restructured the compensation system by introducing a new "acute intensive care unit hospitalization fee."
The first round of designated institutions includes 305 beds at 23 tertiary general hospitals, such as Seoul National University Hospital, and 86 beds at 3 national psychiatric hospitals. The government plans to conduct a second round of applications by the first half of next year, targeting existing pilot project participants and capable psychiatric hospitals in each region, with the goal of securing a total of 1,600 intensive care beds nationwide by the end of 2026. Some criteria will be applied flexibly in the future, taking into account regional emergency hospitalization demand and available medical resources.
Intensive care hospitals will not only provide inpatient treatment but also operate 10-20% of their beds for emergency admissions at all times. They are also required to provide hospital-based case management, such as discharge planning and follow-up via home visits or phone consultations, to ensure continuity of care after discharge. Through these measures, intensive care hospitals will play a central role in the mental health treatment system, from initial emergency response and intensive treatment to ongoing care after discharge.
Lee Hyunghoon, Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, stated, "Through the designation of these intensive care hospitals, we hope that acute patients will receive timely and proper treatment and return to their daily lives as soon as possible. We will continue to improve the treatment environment so that patients and families struggling with the onset of mental illness can choose a hospital without hesitation."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
