Song Hyunjong
Department of Health Policy & Management, Sangji University, Wonju, Korea.
J Hosp Palliat Care. 2024 Dec 1;27(4):167-171. doi: 10.14475/jhpc.2024.27.4.167.
Korea introduced long-term care insurance on July 1, 2008, to alleviate the burden on families caring for older adults amidst rapid aging and societal changes. Since then, the system has expanded significantly. However, there remains a shortfall in services adequately addressing the nursing, care, health, and medical needs of older adults at the end of life. Therefore, it is essential to reform the long-term care insurance system to enhance service coverage and improve the quality of care for older adults, thereby supporting dignified end-of-life experiences. A phased approach is necessary to integrate end-of-life care into the existing long-term care insurance framework. Several strategies could be considered. First, end-of-life care could be included as a home-based benefit within the long-term care insurance system. Second, introducing an additional fee could be a practical method to incorporate these services into the premiums for long-term care insurance. This approach would make it feasible to extend these benefits to nursing homes. Third, recognizing the significance of end-of-life services and promoting quality improvement could be achieved by incorporating end-of-life needs assessments and related services into the regular evaluations of long-term care facilities.
2008年7月1日，韩国引入了长期护理保险，以缓解在快速老龄化和社会变革背景下家庭照顾老年人的负担。自那时以来，该体系已大幅扩展。然而，在满足临终老年人的护理、照料、健康和医疗需求方面，服务仍存在不足。因此，改革长期护理保险体系以扩大服务覆盖范围并提高老年人护理质量，从而支持有尊严的临终体验至关重要。将临终关怀纳入现有的长期护理保险框架需要采取分阶段的方法。可以考虑几种策略。首先，临终关怀可作为长期护理保险体系内的一项居家福利包含在内。其次，引入额外费用可能是将这些服务纳入长期护理保险保费的一种切实可行的方法。这种方法将使把这些福利扩展到养老院成为可能。第三，通过将临终需求评估及相关服务纳入长期护理机构的定期评估中，认识到临终服务的重要性并促进质量提升是可以实现的。
