Nowon-gu Public Health Center Remodeling...User-Centered Transformation with Book Cafe, Vertical Garden, and More

Remodeling of 2nd Floor Health Management Center, Establishment of 4th Floor Mother and Child Health Center

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) is remodeling the first floor of the Nowon-gu Public Health Center during the period when residents' use has been restricted due to COVID-19.

In the past, the health center only provided national vaccination and simple health management services, but recently it has been conducting various projects such as dental treatment, pregnancy and childbirth support, smoking cessation, and dementia support to meet the increased demand for better service environments from residents.

The district plans to reorganize the space and flow on the first floor, including the civil service reception area, restrooms, and corridors, focusing on users, and newly create cultural spaces to provide comfortable and dignified public health services.

First, the information desk located directly in front of the main entrance will be moved to the left side of the entrance to minimize the flow, and the desk height will be lowered to allow easy access for children, people with disabilities, and the elderly. The existing restrooms will be increased from one each for men and women to two and three stalls respectively, and one additional accessible restroom for men and women will be separately installed. Also, the entrances to the clinical pathology room and tuberculosis room will be converted to open types to provide a spacious feeling.

Particularly, special attention is being paid to the stair-shaped book cafe, green flower bed, and indoor vertical garden, which serve as rest areas for visitors.

Instead of the existing civil service office, an open civil service desk will be installed, and the remaining space of the civil service office and the empty space in the lobby will be utilized to create a green resting area as part of the Smart Garden project. This will not only provide a pleasant environment by removing harmful substances such as fine dust and controlling temperature and humidity with highly effective plants, but also reduce the tension of visitors to the health center through visual stability.

The district announced that construction began on the 12th with the goal of completion by the end of June. They are making efforts to minimize inconvenience to visitors by installing construction barriers and providing civil service guidance.

Meanwhile, the district remodeled 153 pyeong (approximately 505 square meters) on the second floor of the health center last year to create the ‘Nowon-gu Health Management Center,’ where metabolic syndrome, healthy lifestyle practice, smoking cessation clinic, oral health room, and health education are conducted in one space. The Maternal and Child Health Center on the fourth floor will provide systematic health management services for mothers and infants from pre-pregnancy to post-delivery, and construction is in the final stages with a planned opening in May.

Since Nowon-gu has a high proportion of elderly population among the 25 autonomous districts of Seoul, the district plans to improve accessibility to health centers by expanding health sub-centers in two areas, Madeul and Junggye, in addition to the existing four health sub-centers (Nowon, Sanggye, Wolgye, Gongneung).

District Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, “Starting with the remodeling of Nowon Public Health Center, we plan to create a more pleasant and comfortable health center environment,” and added, “We will continue to strive for ‘Nowon, a 100-year healthy city.’”

Nowon-gu Health and Hygiene Division

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