'I Have an AI Friend, So I'm Not Lonely!' ... Pohang Buk-gu Health Center

AI Check-in Call Service Provided Every Monday

Monitoring Vulnerable Households and Rapid Response to Crisis Situations

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] Pohang City Buk-gu Health Center is providing a service that asks about the health and well-being of citizens feeling isolated and engages in daily conversations through Naver Clova Care Call, warmly touching the hearts of those who are lonely.

A loneliness survey conducted by Gyeongbuk Province revealed that about 6 out of 10 residents feel lonely.

In particular, the fewer the number of household members, the higher the loneliness score, and as the degree of loneliness increased, the level of depression also rose.

In Pohang City Buk-gu, single-person households account for 45,906 households, making up 37.36%, and the experience rate of depression is 3.7%, which is lower than the average of 10.2%. However, the suicide rate per 100,000 people increased by 3.2 from 20.7 in 2017 to 23.9.

Accordingly, Buk-gu Health Center provides a telephone service every Monday where the ‘AI Friend (Naver Clova Care Call)’ calls residents who express loneliness to ask about their daily well-being, focusing on managing those exposed to depression.

AI Friend, Clova Care Call Promotional Material (Conversation Example).

A citizen receiving the AI Friend service said, “Since someone calls at a set time, I feel less alone, and when I expressed that I was struggling, the health center staff contacted me directly and took care of me, which made me feel much more at ease.”

Park Hyekyung, director of Buk-gu Health Center, said, “Through AI Friend, we have established a system to monitor vulnerable households and respond quickly to crisis situations. We will continue to do our best to build a safety net for citizens feeling isolated.”

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