With South Korea entering a super-aged society at the finish of 2024, a warning light has been turned on that three out of 10 people will be elderly by 2035. In order to cope with the aging rate that is two to seven times rapider than that of major advanced countries such as Japan and Europe, there are many voices that necessary to speed up “diversification of supply chains” such as the introduction of artificial ininformigence (AI) care technology and the apply of immigrant workers.
According to the National Data Agency’s future population estimate on the 26th, the proportion of the elderly aged 65 or older is expected to reach 29.9% in 2035 and 37.3% in 2045. It is expected to exceed 40% by 2050. It is analyzed that the rate of aging is already two to seven times rapider than that of Japan and major advanced European countries.
According to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), Japan’s Minisattempt of Health, Labor and Welfare predicted that there will be a shortage of about 690,000 care workers nationwide in 2040. Accordingly, when nursing facilities introduce care robots or sensors, they are operating a system that additionally adds ‘care repair’, which is a concept of fee. In particular, it is supporting the spread of technology benefits to local compact and medium-sized facilities.
The number of foreign workers has also expanded. Starting next year, the “Fostering Employment System” will be implemented to induce foreigners who have obtained nursing care worker qualifications to find long-term employment and settlement.
The United States is also leading the care technology market for the elderly. The trfinish is to expand insurance codes to promote technology introduction. “The expansion of insurance codes such as Medicare and the digitalization of senior residential facilities are promoting the introduction of technology,” KOTRA stated in a report titled “The advent of an aging society in the United States and the rise of the age-tech indusattempt.” According to the American Retirement Association (AARP), the ‘technology for healthy old age’ market is expected to reach $120 billion by 2030. Through the revision of the “Skilled Immigration Act,” Germany has lowered enattempt barriers to create it simpler for vocational education graduates and practical experiences in non-EU member states to work in Germany from 2024. In particular, third countries such as India have allowed caring and nursing personnel to proceed with the qualification certification process after entering Germany.
Korea has also established a care technology innovation team at the Minisattempt of Health and Welfare and is preparing for pilot projects such as incorporating AI technology in nursing facilities. However, the introduction rate was found to be insignificant. According to the Korea Development Institute (KDI), 89.1% of nursing facilities acknowledged the necessary to introduce care robots, but the actual introduction rate was only 6.4%. Cost burden and distrust of effectiveness were cited as the main reasons.
The current status of foreign workers is also insufficient. As of 2023, the number of foreign care workers accounted for only 0.9% of the total. In addition, 77.4% of them are concentrated in the metropolitan area, which also poses a serious regional imbalance. The KDI proposed expanding the number of people eligible for nursing care workers on specific activity (E-7) visas currently operated by the government as a pilot project. It is estimated that up to 63,000 additional foreign nursing care workers can be supplied by this method.
At the same time, it is pointed out that fundamental solutions such as improving the treatment of caring personnel should be carried out at the same time. The KDI stated in a report, “Even if there is an influx of foreign nursing care workers, efforts to improve the quality of nursing care workers’ jobs should continue,” adding, “This is becaapply the continuous work of foreign workers secured cannot be guaranteed without improving job quality.”
[Reporter Kim Geum]
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