South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare says it will begin to survey people at risk of dying alone and target assistance toward this vulnerable group, as it seeks to halt the increase in ‘lonely deaths’.
The annual survey will be part of a plan to document the number of people at risk of dying alone, and provide services including health, employment and medical care according to their needs by age groups.
The Ministry believes at present there are more that 1.5 million Koreans in danger of dying alone.
The number of Koreans dying alone has risen by 8.8 per cent over the past five years, to 3,378 in 2022. This means 1.06 per cent of people who died last year did so alone. The plan aims to reduce that number to 0.85 per cent.
Public facilities such as libraries and cultural centres will act as venues for counselling, and art and sports programs will be introduced.
In addition, 244 family centres and 475 social welfare centres nationwide will provide social gatherings for one-person households.
The Ministry will train and mobilise people, such as real estate agents, to conduct regular checks.
Artificial intelligence technology will collect data on the daily power and water usage patterns of high-risk groups and monitor them for signs of unusual behaviour.
For the dead who do not have families or relatives to take care of the body, public funeral services will be expanded.
Psychological programs are under development to help bereaved families and the people around them who have had to go through the trauma of discovering the body.
The Ministry said a Lonely Death Prevention Day will be designated to raise public awareness on the issue, alongside other social campaigns.
Seoul, 21 May 2023
