She studies lonely deaths — and shared her door code with a neighbor
Researcher Song In-joo's father had been adamant that he did not want to die in a hospital, so she stayed by his side at home through his final days. "I realized that death isn't a momentary event, but a long, painful process. You have to work hard to die," Song said. "Everything is going as it should," her father said two days before he died. "I believe my father died peacefully, thanks to the…
Researcher Song In-joo dedicated her life to studying lonely deaths and sharing her door code with a neighbor. Her father had strongly refused hospitalization, so she remained by his side during his final days. Song concluded that death is not a brief occurrence, but rather a protracted and arduous process. She aimed to alleviate the pain of lonely deaths, which often result from a lack of care and human connection.
In 2016, Song, then a senior research fellow at the Seoul Welfare Foundation, embarked on her research to prevent such tragedies. Her objective was to identify those who die isolated, the reasons behind their isolation, and the manner in which they spend their final days. As she couldn't seek the dead's perspective directly, Song examined police records on 20,000 unattended deaths and engaged with family members and neighbors to investigate the circumstances surrounding lonely deaths, a method referred to as a "social autopsy."
Recently, Song published her findings, shedding light on the often neglected and painful aspects of the dying process.
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