{
  "id": 13320206,
  "title": "She studies lonely deaths — and shared her door code with a neighbor",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/she-studies-lonely-deaths-and-shared-her-door-code-with-a-neighbor",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-10T04:12:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/society/20261010/she-studies-lonely-deaths-and-shared-her-door-code-with-a-neighbor"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Song In-joo, a researcher at the Seoul Welfare Foundation, studied lonely deaths and shared her door code with a neighbor. Her father had always wished to die at home, so she remained by his side during his final days. Song soon realized that death was not a quick event, but a long, painful process that required care and human touch. Just two days before her father's death in 2016, he expressed his belief that he would pass away peacefully thanks to the support he received. This experience inspired Song to begin researching lonely deaths in 2016, aiming to prevent people from dying without care or human contact.\n\nTo achieve this goal, Song analyzed police records on 20,000 unattended deaths and interviewed family members and neighbors to understand the circumstances surrounding lonely deaths, a process called a \"social autopsy.\"",
  "summary": "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…",
  "key_points": [
    "Song In-joo studied lonely deaths for her research at Seoul Welfare Foundation.",
    "Her father's wish to die at home inspired her to care for the dying.",
    "She analyzed 20,000 unattended deaths and performed social autopsies to prevent lonely deaths."
  ],
  "editors_take": "Song's personal experience informs her research on lonely deaths, shifting the focus from simply identifying cases to understanding the human circumstances that allow for a compassionate end-of-life experience.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "She studies lonely deaths — and shared her door code with a neighbor",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/she-studies-lonely-deaths-and-shared-her-door-code-with-a-neighbor-13323625",
        "published": "2026-10-10T04:32:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}