Jeju Island, South Korea – Jeju residents who are elderly or chronically ill will have expanded access to home healthcare services starting next year. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has selected 135 medical institutions in 91 regions, including Jeju, to participate in the third phase of a pilot program for long-term care home healthcare centers.

The program allows medical professionals and social workers to visit the homes of long-term care insurance beneficiaries to provide medical services and connect them to necessary community care services. Jeju Medical Center and MedioRurm Family Medicine will join the program, expanding on the services already offered by Norhyeong 365 Jun Clinic since January.

Eligible patients include people with severe disabilities, terminally ill patients, children under 18 requiring home care services, and those who are unable to visit a medical institution due to illness.

A team of three healthcare professionals – a doctor, a nurse, and a social worker – will visit the patient's home for a house call. The frequency of visits can be adjusted based on the patient's condition. For example, a patient receiving regular TPN (total parenteral nutrition) for cancer treatment may require a visit by both a doctor and a nurse. However, a bedridden patient with Parkinson's disease may only need a monthly visit from a doctor for prescription refills.

"We hope that more residents will be able to benefit from home healthcare services," said Dr. Hwang Ji-hyun of MedioRurm Family Medicine. "We should also consider expanding services to medically underserved areas in the future, such as through a primary care physician system."