Government Complex Sejong, home to the Ministry of Health and Welfare [Newsis]
Government Complex Sejong, home to the Ministry of Health and Welfare [Newsis]

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced Tuesday that it has designated Dankook University Hospital as a regional psychiatric emergency medical center, bringing the national total to 14 centers across 11 cities and provinces.

The regional psychiatric emergency medical center program was introduced in 2022 to provide round-the-clock integrated physical and psychiatric care to patients in psychiatric emergencies — including those who have attempted self-harm or suicide and require urgent medical attention.

Designation goes to regional or local emergency medical centers in cities and provinces that operate a local psychiatric emergency response council, following an evaluation of their facilities, staffing standards and psychiatric emergency response capabilities.

Within dedicated emergency room beds, emergency medicine and psychiatry departments collaborate to deliver medical and surgical treatment alongside psychiatric assessment and care.

Designated facilities receive government support covering facility improvement costs for operating short-term observation zones, as well as personnel costs for medical staff including doctors and nurses.

For psychiatric emergency patients treated in the short-term observation zone, hospitals may bill a short-term observation zone management fee — charged once per day, up to three times over 72 hours — as well as an initial psychiatric emergency assessment fee. A psychiatric patient surcharge also applies to emergency specialist consultation fees and remote consultation fees.

Since 2022, the ministry has designated and operated 13 centers across 10 cities and provinces. This year, through an open application process, it added one center in South Chungcheong Province, which had previously had no such facility.

Psychiatric emergency patients in South Chungcheong will now be able to receive both physical emergency treatment and psychiatric assessment and care at a single institution, reducing the need to transfer between multiple hospitals or wait through treatment delays.

The ministry plans to expand the network to 17 centers by 2030 to ensure patients in psychiatric emergencies can receive timely care.

"The regional psychiatric emergency medical center program exists so that patients who need both physical emergency treatment and psychiatric care do not miss the window for treatment," said Lee Seon-yeong, the ministry's director general for mental health policy. "We will continue to expand the network of regional psychiatric emergency medical centers and strengthen cooperation among relevant agencies so that psychiatric emergency patients can receive the care they need without delay."

If you're thinking about self-harm or suicide, contact the Ministry of Health and Welfare's helpline 1393, available 24/7. Please request a translator for English-language services.


thlee@heraldcorp.com