Yangcheon-gu Implements Comprehensive Measures Against Solitary Deaths... 3.3 Billion KRW Invested in 23 Policies

Yangcheon-gu Implements Comprehensive Measures Against Solitary Deaths with Dense Connections to Eliminate Isolation Concerns… 3.3 Billion KRW Invested in 23 Policies

Establishing a Public-Private Partnership-Centered Response and Support System for Solitary Deaths to Realize Dense and Robust Welfare for the Vulnerable

Promoting 23 Projects in Four Major Areas: Strengthening Risk Group Identification, Building Social Safety Nets, Linking Customized Services, Enhancing Response Capabilities and Publicity

Lee Gi-jae, Yangcheon District Mayor, Communicating While Visiting Homes of Elderly Living Alone

Yangcheon-gu (Mayor Lee Gi-jae) announced the establishment of the ‘Yangcheon-type Solitary Death Prevention and Socially Isolated Household Support Plan’ to realize dense and robust welfare for the vulnerable, investing 3.3 billion KRW to implement 23 isolation prevention policies across four major areas.

This initiative responds to recent social issues such as solitary deaths and isolation arising from changes in family structures centered on single-person households and the deterioration of social networks. In particular, since single-person households account for 32.2% of all households in the district, the district plans to fully focus on preventing solitary deaths by establishing an all-encompassing public-private cooperative support system for socially isolated risk groups.

Under the vision of ‘Yangcheon without Social Isolation Concerns through Dense Connections,’ the district will promote 23 projects in four areas: ▲ Strengthening identification of solitary death risk groups and socially isolated households ▲ Building social safety nets using information and communication technology and local communities ▲ Linking and supporting services for solitary death prevention and socially isolated households ▲ Enhancing field response capabilities and publicity.

First, in the area of ‘Strengthening Identification of Solitary Death and Isolated Households,’ four tasks will be pursued: ▲ ‘Da Hamkke Chachat Cha 2 Uchi 5 Neun Nal,’ which focuses on identifying households with accumulated mail by utilizing welfare neighborhood leaders and monthly neighborhood meetings ▲ Utilizing big data on crisis information from the welfare blind spot discovery system ▲ Conducting surveys focused on middle-aged single-person households in housing-vulnerable areas ▲ Investigating at-risk households linked to moving-in reports, all aimed at identifying those in blind spots.

Second, in the area of ‘Building Social Safety Nets Using ICT and Local Communities,’ seven projects will be implemented, including: ▲ ‘Da Hamkke Chachat Discovery Team,’ composed of about 1,000 local human resources such as workers in daily service industries and community social security councils who have frequent contact with residents ▲ AI phone check-in service ▲ ‘Smart Plug,’ which detects dangerous situations through changes in electricity consumption and illumination ▲ ‘Safety Management Solution,’ which uses Internet of Things (IoT) technology to monitor the safety of about 500 vulnerable elderly households in real time.

Third, in the area of ‘Linking and Supporting Services for Solitary Death and Isolated Households,’ nine projects will expand the support system, including: ▲ ‘Single-Person Household Support Center,’ which helps with finance, housing, leisure culture, and network formation for single-person households ▲ ‘Care SOS Center,’ where care managers assess welfare needs and provide ten major welfare services such as temporary home care, accompaniment support, and meal delivery ▲ ‘Youth Mental Health Voucher,’ offering professional psychological counseling services to local youth for emotional stability ▲ ‘Middle-Aged Single-Person Household Support Project,’ centered on five regional comprehensive social welfare centers to assist with self-reliance support and building human connection networks ▲ ‘Yangcheon-gu Welfare Counseling Center,’ which connects emergency welfare resources with a single phone call during unexpected crises such as arrears, medical expenses, or housing crises.

In particular, the district plans to strengthen customized public funeral support according to the type of unclaimed deaths to preserve the dignity of the deceased.

Finally, in the area of ‘Enhancing Field Response Capabilities and Publicity,’ the district will implement on-site capacity-building training for welfare officials and residents, prepare work response manuals for solitary death occurrences, and distribute the ‘Welfare Informer Hope Notebook,’ which contains guidelines for discovering welfare blind spots, to raise social awareness of solitary deaths and socially isolated households and further strengthen the response capabilities of field officials.

Lee Gi-jae, Mayor of Yangcheon-gu, stated, “Solitary death is not just an individual issue but a social matter that requires active consideration and response at the local government and national levels. Through this comprehensive policy, we will build a dense social network reflecting characteristics by age and region to create a warm city, Yangcheon, that can be a reliable support for neighbors in need.”

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