Warm Story of Gwanak-gu Welfare Officer Saving Elderly Living Alone Gains Attention

Elderly Mr. Choi in a Confused State Due to Overdose of Depression Medication, Welfare Planner Dong Stays by His Side All Night with Warm Heart

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Amid the fatigue of daily life caused by the resurgence of COVID-19 and typhoons, a story of a public official who took responsibility and did their best in their duties has been shared in the local community, becoming a hot topic.

On the 31st of last month, during the peak of the heatwave, Mr. Kim (71, Sinwon-dong) visited the Sinwon-dong Community Center to request help due to the heat and flooding in his basement room, which made living difficult.

Mr. Kim, who resides in Sinwon-dong, is a vulnerable senior citizen under focused management by the community center due to severe mood swings caused by depression, sometimes exhibiting rough behavior.

Upon hearing Mr. Kim’s situation, Officer Choi from Sinwon-dong Community Center immediately applied for emergency living support funds, accompanied him to the hospital for treatment, and then guided him to a heatwave safety shelter operated by the district so he could spend a cool night away from the heat.

The next afternoon, Officer Choi visited the safety shelter to check on Mr. Kim’s well-being. However, despite knocking on the door and ringing the bell several times, there was no sign of movement inside the room.

Sensing something was wrong, Officer Choi promptly requested assistance from the police and the 119 emergency medical team, opened the door, and entered the room. It was confirmed that Mr. Kim was in a confused state due to an overdose of his usual depression medication. Without Officer Choi’s quick judgment, it could have been a dangerous moment.

After emergency treatment, Mr. Kim regained consciousness, but a problem arose when trying to transfer him to a hospital. Due to COVID-19, there were no available hospital beds.

Therefore, Officer Choi secured a nearby lodging, helped Mr. Kim bathe, cared for him throughout the night, and stayed by his side. It was only the next morning that Mr. Kim was able to be admitted urgently to a hospital in Yeongdeungpo.

Officer Choi said, “Listening to the voices of district residents in crisis and working proactively is our fundamental duty,” and added, “I am embarrassed that this is being recognized as a good deed because I was just doing what I had to do.”

In addition, the district is supporting safety shelters (lodging facilities) as alternative facilities for seniors aged 60 and over to protect vulnerable groups in housing, since heatwave shelters such as senior centers are not operating due to COVID-19.

Originally scheduled to operate from early July to the end of August during the tropical night period, the operation of safety shelters has been extended until the end of September following the announcement of strengthened quarantine measures in the metropolitan area, which led to the suspension of heatwave shelters in social welfare facilities.

District Mayor Junhee Park said, “Even in the exhausting situation due to COVID-19 related work, hearing the story of Officer Choi, who takes responsibility and does his best in his fundamental duties, made me feel and learn a lot,” and added, “We will make every effort to support vulnerable groups whose protection has become more urgent due to COVID-19 and the heatwave.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.