Last Year Alone, 3,378 People Died Alone... 36% Increase Over 5 Years

Male Proportion Five Times Higher Than Female

Solitary death image

[Asia Economy Reporter Byeon Seon-jin] The number of solitary deaths has been increasing every year, leading to a higher proportion of such deaths among overall mortality causes. In particular, men have been found to be more vulnerable to solitary death compared to women. Solitary death refers to cases where a person living alone, isolated from family, relatives, or acquaintances, dies by suicide or illness and is discovered after a certain period of time.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 14th the results of the "2022 Solitary Death Survey," which investigated the status and characteristics of solitary deaths in South Korea over the past five years. This survey, led by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, is the first quinquennial survey on solitary deaths conducted in the country. It was carried out over approximately eight months starting in April by analyzing 240,000 criminal justice records shared by the National Police Agency over five years to extract cases that meet the legal criteria for solitary death.

Solitary Deaths Generally Increasing Except in 2019... Proportion of Deaths Exceeds 1%

According to the survey results, there were a total of 3,378 solitary deaths last year, an increase of 99 cases (3.0%) compared to the previous year (3,279). Except for 2019, which reflected the base effect of a sharp increase in total deaths in 2018, solitary deaths have generally been on the rise. Compared to 2017, the first year of the survey period (2,412 cases), the number increased by 867 cases (35.9%) over five years. The proportion of solitary deaths among total deaths rose from 0.8% in 2017 to 1.1% last year.

The region with the highest number of solitary deaths was Gyeonggi Province, with 3,185 cases, followed by Seoul (2,748 cases), Busan (1,408 cases), and others. The region with the fewest cases was Sejong, with 54. The data shows that solitary deaths occur more frequently in areas with higher population density. The regions with the highest average annual increase rates in solitary deaths were Jeju (38.4%), Daejeon (23.0%), and Gangwon (13.2%). Conversely, the regions with the largest decreases were Jeonbuk (25.4%), Gyeongnam (9.8%), and Chungnam (9.3%).

Currently, nine metropolitan cities and provinces?Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Ulsan, Gyeonggi, Gangwon, Chungbuk, Jeonbuk, and Gyeongbuk?are conducting a "Solitary Death Prevention and Management Pilot Project" from August this year through next year. This project identifies individuals at risk of solitary death within the community and provides services such as ▲welfare checks ▲living support ▲mental and psychological support ▲post-mortem management. The Ministry of Health and Welfare emphasized the need for rapid nationwide expansion of this project as solitary death issues continue to arise in other regions as well.

Proportion of Male Solitary Deaths Five Times Higher than Females

Solitary deaths have consistently been more than four times higher among men than women each year. Last year, this gap widened to 5.3 times. Over the past five years, the average annual growth rate of solitary death fatalities was 10.0% for men and 5.6% for women, with solitary deaths accounting for 1.3?1.6% of male deaths and 0.3?0.4% of female deaths.

The age group with the highest incidence of solitary deaths is those in their 50s and 60s, increasing from 52.8% in 2017 to 58.6% last year. The proportion of people in their 20s and 30s was 6.5% last year. The most common locations for solitary deaths last year were houses (50.3%), apartments (22.3%), and one-room units (13.0%). The Ministry of Health and Welfare pointed out the urgent need to establish a prevention system focused on areas densely populated with multi-family housing to identify high-risk groups.

The proportion of suicides among solitary deaths was 17.3% last year, with the rate increasing among younger age groups. It was 56.6% for those in their 20s, 40.2% for those in their 30s, and 100% for teenagers. The Ministry stated, "Prevention policies for solitary deaths among young people need to be linked with suicide prevention policies, including mental and psychological support."

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, together with National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee member Kim Mi-ae and Ewha Womans University’s Institute for Integrated Aging Society Research, will hold a public hearing related to this survey at the National Assembly Members' Office Building this afternoon. Following a presentation on the "1st Basic Plan for Solitary Death Prevention," they plan to gather opinions from related ministries, local governments, and experts by the first quarter of next year to establish a solitary death prevention and management system. Major overseas countries such as the UK and Japan have recently established dedicated organizations and announced government strategies to address solitary deaths.

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