Among the respondents, 21 percent wanted more financial support from the government, 19 percent wanted medical treatment support and 7 percent wanted visiting nurse services.

The report gathered that an average of 6 million won ($5,200) was spent annually to care for a disabled child, of which more than half went to medical treatments.

Government subsidy per child came up to 2.6 million ($2,200) won on average, 44 percent of the total fee. 

The center’s report also underscored a correlation between the parents’ income levels and their desire to educate their disabled children.

Households with monthly income of less than 2.6 million won ($2,200) had a 24.4 percent rate of request for expansion of educational centers, while those with more than 4.7 million won ($4,100) of monthly income had a 43 percent request rate.

From these educational institutions, 46 percent of parents wanted their children to develop social adaptability, 27 percent wanted language development, 11 percent wanted acquirement of basic daily habits, and 7 percent wanted cognitive development.

The report said the parents took an average of 14.5 months to have their children officially diagnosed after initial signs of abnormal behaviors.

Out of the surveyed parents, 39 percent said they had trouble accepting their children’s disability while 32 percent said they struggled to find relevant information and required services.

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)