Sokcho City Signs Agreement with Five Medical Institutions for "Discharged Patient Community Connection" Project

City Takes Proactive Steps on Integrated Care Support Act
Launches "Sokcho-Style Integrated Care" Initiative
Rapid Connection to Community-Based Integrated Care System

Sokcho City in Gangwon Province has joined hands with medical institutions to identify patients who have been discharged or are about to be discharged and are in need of care, connecting them to customized integrated care, and working to strengthen the community-based integrated care system.

Sokcho City held a business agreement on the 5th at the city hall situation room with five local and external medical institutions to promote the integrated care 'Discharged Patient Community Connection Project.' Provided by Sokcho City

On March 5, the city signed a business agreement in the City Hall Situation Room with five medical institutions inside and outside the jurisdiction to promote the integrated care "Discharged Patient Community Connection Project."

This agreement is a proactive measure in response to the "Act on the Integrated Support for Regional Care Including Medical and Nursing Care," which is scheduled to be implemented at the end of March 2026. The project aims to quickly connect discharged or soon-to-be-discharged patients—such as seniors aged 65 or older with high medical or care needs after hospitalization for severe chronic illnesses, fractures, or falls, as well as those with severe brain lesions or physical disabilities—to the regional integrated care system, supporting them to live stably in their own communities.

The five participating medical institutions are Gangneung Asan Hospital, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Sokcho Medical Center, Onjae Hospital, Sokcho Woori Nursing Hospital, and Sokcho Jeong Nursing Hospital.

Under the agreement, Sokcho City and the participating medical institutions will identify discharged or soon-to-be-discharged patients in need of care by comprehensively considering their physical functions and living conditions. They plan to establish individualized integrated care support plans and provide a wide range of services in an integrated manner, including home-visit medical care and daily living support.

This agreement is significant in that the medical institutions have agreed to share public responsibility not only for providing simple treatment, but also for creating a sustainable care environment within the community. The participating institutions have supported discharged patients' reintegration into the community by taking part in various national-level projects, such as the public health care cooperation system project, the acute phase discharge support pilot project, the nursing hospital discharge patient support system, and the rehabilitation medical institution fee pilot project.

Based on this foundation of public health care, Sokcho City plans to activate integrated care in earnest and further strengthen cooperation among medical institutions to establish a community-centered integrated care connection system. The city aims to expand the scope of cooperation beyond individual projects through the "Sokcho-Style Discharged Patient Community Connection Project," and to provide more systematic and stable support for discharged or soon-to-be-discharged patients' return to the community.

In particular, with this agreement as an opportunity, the city will further solidify the integrated medical care delivery system that covers the entire process from identifying eligible patients to service provision and post-service monitoring. It also plans to analyze the outcomes of project operations and work on further advancing the services.

Mayor Lee Byeongseon of Sokcho City stated, "This business agreement will serve as an opportunity to move beyond temporary treatment and build a sustainable care environment within the community," adding, "We will do our utmost to further strengthen cooperation with medical institutions so that citizens can continue to live healthy and secure lives in familiar surroundings."

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