High Response to Convenience Services Including Accompaniment Support at Songpa-gu Care SOS Center

Direct On-Site Visits to Identify Care Gaps, 1,326 Service Cases Supported Over 3 Months... Gratitude and Praise for Comprehensive Care Services in the COVID-19 Era

Companion Support Service

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] The ‘Songpa-gu Care SOS Center’ is receiving great responses by providing practical help to residents amid the COVID-19 situation.

Songpa-gu (Mayor Park Seong-su) announced that starting this year, 27 community service centers will provide eight types of care services by adding ▲Companion Support ▲Housing Convenience ▲Health Support ▲Well-being Check Services.

Since January 1, the district has expanded care services, operating a detailed welfare safety net from emergency care to daily convenience services for residents who have difficulty receiving help.

The ‘Companion Support Service,’ implemented from this year, alleviates worries for children who feel the burden of balancing work and care, and the ‘Housing Convenience Service,’ which assists with simple home repairs, cleaning, disinfection, and quarantine within the household, plays a significant role in improving residents’ quality of life.

During three months in 2021, a total of 1,326 care services such as temporary home care and meal support were provided to 638 people experiencing care gaps in the area.

In particular, to ensure safe COVID-19 vaccination for those aged 75 and older, care managers visit elderly individuals experiencing care gaps to guide them to the vaccination center (Songpa-gu Sports and Culture Center) and provide companion support services for homebound elderly living alone who have difficulty moving.

For example, Ms. A (85, female), a single elderly resident of Macheon-dong, had difficulty walking due to angina and back pain, making it hard to travel alone to the COVID-19 vaccination center. With the care manager’s suggestion, she received companion support services and was able to get vaccinated safely.

Mr. B (54), a middle-aged single-person household with hearing impairment living in Bangi-dong, was unable to receive donated goods due to tuberculosis but, upon the care manager’s recommendation, began receiving meal support services, relieving his concerns about meals for the time being.

Ms. C (86), a low-income elderly single-person household living in Geoyeo-dong, is bedridden due to a herniated disc and liver cirrhosis, and care gaps are occurring with only long-term home care services.

Accordingly, discussions are underway at the center regarding overlapping support of long-term care services and Care SOS temporary home care services, as well as extension of temporary home care services.

Additionally, the Care SOS Center actively identifies care gap cases through care managers who promptly visit and provide services within an average of three days, offering systematic care plans and customized services, which has earned strong support from residents.

Accordingly, the district plans to further systematize and operate the ‘Care SOS Service.’

Moreover, the Care SOS Center has expanded its target to include not only the elderly and disabled but also middle-aged households aged 50 and above, ensuring that any resident can receive support without care blind spots.

For more details, contact the Songpa-gu Welfare Policy Division or the local community service center.

Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa-gu, emphasized, “The Care SOS Center plays a pivotal role in caring for households facing increased care crises due to COVID-19,” and added, “We will carefully look into residents’ difficulties, gradually expand care services, and devote all efforts to strengthening the welfare safety net.”

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