The 6th Asian Congress of medical and care facilities is scheduled to be held from Thursday, 20th of June to Friday, 21st of June, 2024 at Busan Port International Exhibition and Convention Center, or BPEX. This brings great joy and honor to us, as it is the first Conference to be held since the 5th Asian Congress of medical and care facilities was held in 2019 in Shanghai, after which we were forced to take a hiatus due to the pandemic.

Korea has been seeing a rapid ageing of its population alongside a low fertility rate. A survey on the elderly population conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare found that approximately 84% of the elderly population are suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer, cerebrovascular stroke, diabetes and hypertension. As the ageing of the population further advances, the government is making efforts to overhaul systems and policies to address various issues that come with it. Pilot projects involving care centers and rehoming services are such examples.

In addition to an ageing population and a low birth rate, the lack of workforce in the elderly care and healthcare industry, and the need for various efforts to become the preferred services by patients are some of the challenges that Japan, China and Korea all face. I hope that this Conference will serve as a great opportunity to learn some of the knowhow of Japan that experienced an aging population 20 years prior to us, and a venue where the three countries can share cases and seek common solutions.

With the unprecedented change brought about by COVID-19, we have been faced with the need to set new standards and directions in the area of healthcare. As such, we have chosen this year’s theme to be Long-Term Medical Care, Navigating the New Normal. While there have been some challenges along the way, now that our lives are back to normal, we are all realizing that those pandemic years did bring some benefits. It was a time when online consultations, IT and IoT-related services in the medical field saw great progress, as we had no choice to overcome the lack of both physical and human resources. This has brought about a shift in the paradigm, for new types of healthcare and nursing services to appear.

I have high hopes that this Conference will serve as a great opportunity for exchange of highly specialized knowledge in the areas of long-term care and recovery care, through the lecture programs we have prepared.
The first day will be kicked off with a keynote speech, followed by a talk show under the theme, “How the Hospitals of Japan, China and Korea Work” for an honest exchange of the opportunities and challenges that hospitals have come across. While the three countries may differ in terms of systems or policies, I hope that it will still be a meaningful event where we can discuss various approaches to management and human resource challenges.
The second day will be focused on those on the front lines of healthcare. A total of 27 lecturers in the three categories of nursing, rehabilitation, and management & HR will give us presentations on clinical nursing with a focus on prevention and cases of rehabilitation centers for recovery care. We expect about 700 attendees, ranging from those working in the field of elderly care to the general public, and hope that it will offer all participants a meaningful opportunity to take a closer look at the current status of elderly care to chart a new course for the future.

Year 2024 marks the 13th anniversary for the Korean Association for Medical and Care facilities, since its establishment on June 1, 2011. Thanks to the six Asian Congress of medical and care facilities, field trips to international healthcare institutions, annual seminars in the autumn and research groups on various themes including the research groups on bedsores and rehabilitation, have been active over the years, in both holding meetings and publication.
I believe such efforts have contributed to improved quality in healthcare as well as better informed patients.

We are now committed than ever to continue these activities to further advancing the progress in long-term care, not only in Korea but throughout Asia.

Further details concerning the Conference can be found on the official website (amcf2024.com). We look forward to greeting you all in Busan this June, one of the leading port cities of Korea that boasts a beautiful natural environment.