※ Introducing Korea’s Best Practices of Local Governments for Older Persons is a monthly report that aims to introduce examples of outstanding policies and practices adopted by the local and municipal governments of Korea that helped improve and contribute to the exercise of the human rights of older persons. The best examples are selected with reference to the ‘Human Rights to be Included in the New UN Convention on the Rights of Older People’ published by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea in 2018. While various attempts have been made by the local and municipal governments in Korea to improve the well-being of older persons, they are not very well known outside the country. ASEM Global Ageing Center (AGAC) aims to fill this gap by selecting and introducing in depth the best practices of local governments adopted and implemented for older persons.
The first case that AGAC has selected is Smart Sensor Lamp introduced by Jincheon-gun (‘gun’ refers to a district unit with a population size between 50,000 and 150,000).
An Application of Gerontechnology to Promote Community Care:
Jincheon-gun’s Smart Sensor Lamp
Gerontechnology is defined as the design of technology and environment to enable older persons to live healthy, comfortable, safe and independent lives, and engage in social activities (International Society for Gerontechnology, 2021). Recently, Gerontechnology has attracted attention from those interested in and concerned about the welfare and human rights of older persons. Gerontechnology aims to prevent ageing and help older persons better cope with the decline in function and activity caused by physical, psychological, and social ageing. In addition, it aims to provide care when independent life is difficult due to ageing, so that individuals can participate in various activities they want regardless of their physical conditions (Silver Industry Specialist Forum, 2021). Many countries are striving to improve the quality of life of older persons by utilizing new technologies such as care and companion robots, Wi-Fi-based monitoring, and early diagnosis systems for diseases. Korea has recently started to participate in this development.
The human rights of older persons potentially addressed by Gerontechnology include the right to support and long-term care for independent living, the right to age at home, and the right to access physical, social, economic and cultural environments. Gerontechnology can be applied in various fields to guarantee many of the human rights of older persons; for instance, it is currently widely applied in the field of community care. Community care is a social service system that allows residents in need of care to live in local communities, either in their own homes or group homes, enjoy services tailored to their individual needs, live with the local community, and engage in self-realization activities (Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2021). A representative example that provides community care through Gerontechnology is Jincheon-gun's Smart Sensor Lamp installation project.
According to the National Indicator System, in Jincheon-gun, the ratio of older persons living alone to the total population of older persons is 28.4 per cent (4,163), which is higher than Korea's overall average of 19.6 per cent. Against this demographic background, the government has promoted a Smart Sensor Lamp installation project, based on Article 27-2 of the Welfare of the Senior Citizens Act (support older persons living alone) and the Ordinance on Social Isolation and Prevention of Lonely Death of Single-Person Households in Jincheon-gun. As the number of single-person households increases, more people are exposed to the risk of dying alone, the project aims to enable a quick response to emergencies by monitoring the safety of older persons living alone. In order to select the people who are to be provided a lamp, in 2019, at the beginning of the project, a full survey was conducted on older persons at risk of dying alone, and the households with the highest risk were selected. From 2020, applications for a lamp were received through each Eup/Myeon (Eup refers to a district unit with a population size of around 20,000; Myeon refers to a district unit a population size between 2,000 and 25,000) or local social welfare institutions, and those applicants who are judged to be in greater need (older persons discharged from hospital, for instance) were prioritized. A Smart Sensor Lamp was installed in the households of 230 older persons living alone in Jincheon-gun during a pilot project implemented in October 2019. The project was initially scheduled to end in 2020, but was extended until 2021 partly due to COVID-19. Currently, 230 households are being monitored.
The main focus of the Smart Sensor Lamp installation project is to install LED lights with built-in motion detection sensors and provide remote controls (emergency callers) to older persons living alone. The ‘gun’ assigns a person in charge to Senior Welfare Center, and if an older person has no movement for a certain period of time (about 8 hours), an emergency signal is transmitted to Social Welfare Center. The person in charge of receiving the signal (text message) visits the household to check on the older person’s condition. In addition, there is an emergency button on the remote-control switch: when the older persons press the button, a notification text message is sent to a relevant Eup/Myeon social welfare official and a designated guardian. After Smart Sensor Lamps were distributed, about 20 emergency situations were detected over a period of a year and 10 months.
The following case shows how the Smart Sensor Lamp helped respond promptly to an emergency situation. There was a 95-year-old woman living alone whose health condition was poor. Accordingly, a Smart Sensor Lamp installed at her house. In the winter of 2020, she fell in front of the door and was not able to move. A Smart Sensor Lamp monitoring staff tried to reach her by phone when her movement had not been detected for several hours. As she did not answer to the phone, she was visited by asocial worker and transferred to hospital. After the accident, she was led to apply for a long-term care service. Since then, nursing care workers visit her home every day to support her with meals and housework, and monitor her health conditions regularly.
Korean Association of Products and Services for Senior Citizens (2021). Purpose of Gerontechnology
* Jincheon-gun Office's Community Welfare Department Leading Business Team provided information and photos in this article.
Jaesung Lee (being08@asemgac.org)