Seoul City 'Hospital Safe Companion Service' Satisfaction at 96%... Free for Low-Income Groups Starting Next Year

'Door to Door' Service for Single-Person Households Hospital↔Home Accompaniment... Over 450 Applicants in Two Months
53% in Their 70s-80s, Followed by 21% in Their 60s and 10% in Their 50s

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul City’s ‘Safe Hospital Companion Service for Single-Person Households,’ launched for those living alone without family or acquaintances to accompany them to the hospital, has surpassed 450 applicants in just two months, with an average service satisfaction rate exceeding 96% for ‘very satisfied.’

According to Seoul City on the 29th, out of 2,029 citizens who inquired about the service over the past two months, 450 applied for the hospital companion service. Among them, 327 have completed using the service, and the remaining 123 are scheduled to use it in the future due to advance reservations and changes in medical schedules. Notably, the number of users, which was 97 in the first month of implementation, more than doubled in the second month.

In particular, an analysis of usage by age group showed that users in their 70s to 80s accounted for the largest share at 53%, followed by those in their 60s (21%) and 50s (10%). A satisfaction survey revealed high satisfaction in the order of timeliness, promptness, information delivery, manager friendliness, cost appropriateness, problem-solving assistance, procedural convenience, and staff professionalism. The average satisfaction ratings were 96.3% ‘very satisfied,’ 3.4% ‘neutral,’ and 0.2% ‘dissatisfied.’

Reflecting the high response from the field, Seoul City plans to waive the 5,000 KRW fee for low-income groups starting next year and to pilot the removal of the annual usage limit of six times for citizens who frequently visit hospitals for dialysis, rehabilitation, and other treatments, allowing them to use the service more comfortably. This measure considers the potential financial burden on low-income individuals.

Additionally, in July next year, a performance evaluation of the service will be conducted to verify the policy effectiveness of the project. The goal is to improve user inconveniences and promote service use so that more citizens can live safe and healthy lives without worry when they are sick alone.

Lee Hae-seon, Head of Seoul City’s Special Task Force for Single-Person Households, said, “Although it has only been about two months since the project started, the Safe Hospital Companion Service is meaningfully establishing itself in alleviating the inconveniences of living alone. Moving forward, we will strengthen promotion so that all citizens who need this service can use it conveniently and make continuous improvements to ensure there are no inconveniences in service use, doing our best efforts.”

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