Seoul City Expands Non-Face-to-Face and Customized Dementia Care Services Amid COVID-19 Concerns

25 District Dementia Relief Centers Temporarily Closed
Minimizing Care Gaps Through Phone Consultations and Health Monitoring

Due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19, 25 dementia safety centers in Seoul are temporarily closed. Meanwhile, staff members are calling elderly dementia patients staying at home to check on their well-being and provide one-on-one communication education.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Amid concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), all 25 'Dementia Safety Centers' in Seoul have simultaneously closed, but the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 1st that it provided a total of over 100,000 customized dementia care services from February 17 to March 26.

According to Seoul City, the 25 Dementia Safety Centers operated by each autonomous district have been closed simultaneously since February 27 to prevent community infection transmission and protect vulnerable groups after the COVID-19 crisis level was raised to 'serious.'

However, even during the closure of the centers, staff remain on site to operate essential services for dementia patient care, and continue to provide existing dementia treatment support and care supplies. Due to the nature of dementia requiring counseling or receipt of patient supplies, face-to-face services cannot be completely stopped, but Seoul City explained that they have minimized face-to-face contact as much as possible and greatly expanded non-face-to-face methods such as phone calls.

During this period alone, there were 2,499 home visits, 10,453 in-person consultations, and 15,088 instances of supply provision, including cognitive activity kits, diapers, waterproof mats, anti-slip socks, masks, and COVID-19 prevention promotional materials.

For dementia seniors who cannot come to the centers and must stay at home, their health status is being checked through more than 70,000 welfare calls. While continuously monitoring the health status of dementia patients or those at high risk of dementia, emotional support is provided, and if necessary, connections to other welfare services through local community centers are made.

Services delivering cognitive education materials and items such as 'Bean Sprout Growing' kits for seniors who must spend lonely time at home are also highly welcomed. In these cases, social distancing is practiced by contacting recipients by phone first and then allowing them to pick up the items at the front door or similar non-face-to-face methods rather than direct delivery.

For example, the Seongdong-gu Dementia Safety Center produced and distributed 'Dementia Safety Kits' consisting of cognitive activity booklets, COVID-19 prevention posters, portable hand sanitizers, wet wipes, colored pencils, and more to each household. This is to help seniors using the center’s 'Memory School' manage their cognitive health at home.

The Geumcheon-gu Dementia Safety Center distributes cognitive stimulation worksheets and provides customized education through one-on-one phone calls. The Gangdong-gu Dementia Safety Center developed the '3GO Project (Overcome COVID-19, Train the Brain, Prevent Dementia),' which consists of programs that seniors can easily practice at home, such as 'Growing Bean Sprouts and Writing Observation Diaries.'

Na Baek-ju, the quarantine control officer of the Seoul Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said, "Since most users of the Dementia Safety Centers are elderly people who are high-risk groups for COVID-19, we are thoroughly managing quarantine and infection control even during the closure." He added, "While the centers are closed as part of social distancing to prevent infection, we will prepare and implement various measures to ensure there is no gap in care for dementia patients and their families."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.