Gyeonggi-do: 41% of Caregivers for Severely Disabled Developmental Disorder Patients Report "Severe Depression"

A 24-Hour Care Status Survey of the Most Severely Disabled People with Developmental Disabilities in Gyeonggi-do

Among the 10 most severely developmentally disabled individuals in Gyeonggi Province, 8 require assistance from others in daily life, and among 10 caregivers of the most severely developmentally disabled, 4 suffer from severe depression.

On the 30th, Gyeonggi Province announced the results of the "2023 Survey on 24-hour Care for the Most Severely Developmentally Disabled," conducted on 1,500 of the most severely developmentally disabled individuals in the province, for the first time nationwide.

There is currently no agreed-upon definition of the most severely developmentally disabled in academia or the field.

Accordingly, Gyeonggi Province included in the survey those among developmentally disabled individuals, encompassing intellectual and autism spectrum disabilities, who refuse facility use due to challenging behaviors such as self-harm or harm to others, or who have extreme developmental difficulties in communication, making daily life difficult.

Since April last year, Gyeonggi Province has been conducting the survey nationwide for the first time to establish proactive care policies for the most severely developmentally disabled who require 24-hour care due to significant limitations in daily living and communication compared to other developmentally disabled individuals.

The survey results showed that 781 individuals, or 55.2%, of the most severely developmentally disabled responded that communication is only possible with help from others. Additionally, 366 respondents (25.9%) said communication is impossible. Only 267 individuals, or 18.9%, answered that they can communicate independently.

The degree of assistance needed in daily life was as follows: 30.8% need help most of the time, 27.1% need help entirely in all matters, and 25.3% need partial help, totaling 83.2% who urgently require care policies.

Furthermore, 479 respondents (33.9%) reported having experienced psychiatric treatment in the past year, but only 49.0% (234 individuals) of them were taking psychiatric medication.

Among respondents, 73.6% said that the time for public care services is insufficient. The most needed time slot was "Weekdays from 12 PM to 6 PM," at 66.3%. This was followed by weekend and holiday afternoons (12 PM to 6 PM) at 53.6%, weekday evenings (6 PM to 10 PM) at 44.2%, and weekday mornings (6 AM to 12 PM) at 43.5%.

The mental health of caregivers of the most severely developmentally disabled was also found to be problematic.

Caregivers reporting severe levels of depression numbered 580, accounting for 41.0% of the total. Those who reported moderate levels of depression were 462 (32.7%).

Seobongja, Director of the Gyeonggi Province Disability Independence Support Division, stated, "We will strive to reflect the results of the 24-hour care survey for the most severely developmentally disabled as much as possible to promote 24-hour care policies that incorporate the needs of the developmentally disabled individuals themselves and their caregivers." She added, "This year, we plan to newly support positive behavior support and integrated care services for the most severely developmentally disabled, as well as parent respite support and vacation care services."

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