ICT-based children's rehabilitation device demonstration center to be built in southeastern city

SEOUL -- To help young children quickly recover from various types of disorders and traumatic memories, an information and communication technology-based children's rehabilitation device demonstration center will be established in the southeastern city of Gyeongsan. The 1,600-square-meter-wide facility, which is about the size of eight tennis courts, will be used for clinical tests, development, and verification of rehabilitation products, and provide educational programs for parents.
 
Gyeongsan said in a statement that the center will break ground in 2023 for five years project through a 14 billion won ($10.9 million)-project. The city located some 300 kilometers (186 miles) southeast of Seoul will work with a local rehabilitation hospital to secure necessary equipment and expert personnel.
 
"Through the establishment of support infrastructure for the development of ICT-based demonstration center, we will help local companies to focus on development and commercialization," Gyeongsan Mayor Cho Hyeon-il said in a statement on December 26. The city will support startup companies to nurture the local medical industry. 
 
According to a survey of 542 children aged five years and younger, conducted by the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in 2022, 33 percent of South Korean children experienced difficulties with their cognitive, linguistic, emotional, and social abilities during a coronavirus pandemic. To provide professional help, a support center that provides a one-stop program including counseling and treatment will be built in Seoul.