A county employee helps an elderly person use the emergency safety service in this photo provided by the Jangheung County Office.
SEOUL, June 15 (Korea Bizwire) — The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday it will expand its emergency safety service by implementing ICT equipment for single elderly and handicapped households.
By utilizing sensors to detect fires and monitor physical activity, the service automatically notifies either the 119 emergency call or emergency management staff, thereby aiding rescue and providing first aid in the event of a fire or loss of consciousness by the residents.
The installation of an emergency call system in bathrooms or bedrooms simplifies the process for users to request assistance during emergencies.
As part of this year’s project, new functionalities have been incorporated.
These include a voice recognition feature that promptly alerts 119 when users shout “Save me,” and a phone call function to check on users who may be inactive.
The ministry reported that, as of the end of last year, the system had been installed in 205,548 households, encompassing 193,861 single elderly households and 11,687 handicapped households.
This system has successfully addressed 163,268 emergency situations.
The government aims to install this system in an additional 100,000 households this year, thereby expanding the service to benefit a total of 300,000 households.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
