"Have You Ever Thought About the Final Moments of Life?"

Strong Response to Advance Medical Directive Registration at Tongyeong City Public Health Center, Gyeongnam

A small health-related item is given to the 200th registrant of the Advance Medical Directive. (Photo by Tongyeong City)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kang Sharon] Tongyeong City in Gyeongnam announced on the 3rd that 200 people have registered within six months since starting consultations and registrations for advance directives on life-sustaining treatment.

The 200th registrant was given a set of health-related items (mask, moisturizing cream, patches, etc.).

Among the 200 registrants, 162 are aged 65 or older, accounting for 0.6% of Tongyeong City's elderly population (25,011 people), and the number of registrants aged 50 or younger is also notable at 20.

The "advance directive on life-sustaining treatment" is a system that, based on medical judgment that recovery is impossible and the patient is in the dying process, stops life-sustaining treatments (such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, mechanical ventilation, hemodialysis, etc.) to allow a natural farewell.

Tongyeong City Public Health Center was designated as a registration institution for advance directives on February 27.

Citizens said, "I came to write the advance directive on life-sustaining treatment so that I would not be a burden to my family after I leave. After actually writing it, I feel both relieved and bittersweet," and "I think death is also a part of life, so I am glad to be able to decide the end of my life by myself like this."

Kang Jisuk, director of Tongyeong City Public Health Center, stated, "Through the preparation of advance directives on life-sustaining treatment, we will work to change negative perceptions about death and help people prepare for the end of life with dignity, thereby establishing a 'well-dying' culture."

Anyone aged 19 or older with an ID card can write an advance directive at the public health center, and for other inquiries, contact the Chronic Disease Management Team.

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