Early Detection and Prevention of Symptom Worsening through Dementia Early Screening
Effective Management and Customized Service Support for Dementia Patients
Reducing Caregiver Burden and Providing Emotional Support for Families of Dementia Patients
Muan-gun, Jeollanam-do is strengthening its dementia care support system and creating a dementia-friendly environment to build a "Happy Muan without Dementia Worries."
According to the county on the 22nd, the dementia population is increasing due to aging, and as of June 2024, Muan-gun has registered and is managing 3,017 people (2,089 dementia patients, 604 with mild cognitive impairment, and 324 with cognitive decline).
Accordingly, the county relocated the Dementia Safety Center to the newly opened health center building in April to improve accessibility and is playing a leading role by utilizing the latest facilities to provide early dementia screening, support for dementia patients, support for families of dementia patients, operation of dementia programs, and dementia awareness improvement projects. These efforts cover everything from early detection to customized dementia management services, ensuring residents can trust and feel secure.
Early Detection and Prevention of Symptom Worsening through Early Dementia Screening
The Dementia Safety Center has conducted 5,272 early screenings since January and is promoting an early dementia screening project that classifies individuals into four groups?normal, cognitive decline, mild cognitive impairment, and dementia patients?based on test results to detect and manage dementia early.
To encourage early dementia screening, residents aged 60 and over receive postal notifications about the necessity of dementia screening. To improve accessibility, initial screening tests are conducted not only at the Dementia Safety Center but also at eight health branch offices, one Namak Health Living Support Center, and eleven health clinics, totaling 21 locations.
Additionally, the mobile early dementia screening project regularly visits village senior centers and welfare facilities to conduct screening tests. For those requiring in-depth examinations, the center collaborates with Muan Hospital, a dementia cooperative hospital, to support differential diagnosis costs.
Effective Management of Dementia Patients and Customized Service Support
When diagnosed with dementia through early screening, effective management is provided through support for dementia treatment costs, provision of care supplies, issuance of identification tags for wandering seniors, customized case management, public guardianship projects for dementia, and dementia patient respite programs.
As of the end of June 2024, 2,857 instances of dementia treatment cost support have been provided. This program supports dementia patients diagnosed through early screening and taking dementia medication with a monthly limit of 30,000 KRW (up to 360,000 KRW annually) for those with a median income of 120% or less.
Starting July 2024, the support for dementia treatment costs will be additionally expanded to dementia patients with a median income between 121% and 140%, aiming to prevent symptom worsening and alleviate the economic burden on dementia patients.
Care supplies (hygiene consumables) necessary for dementia patient care are provided annually to about 800 home-based dementia patients regardless of income.
Care supplies are provided for up to one year from the application date. However, for basic livelihood security recipients and near-poverty groups, there is no time limit; eligibility is reviewed annually at the end of the period to extend support actively.
The criteria for care supply provision include newly registered dementia patients residing in Muan-gun or existing registered dementia patients applying for care supplies for the first time. Supplies are distributed not only by visiting the Dementia Safety Center but also by specialized staff visiting homes when caregivers cannot visit the center.
We are operating the Korean Breathing Dementia Prevention Class as part of the Dementia Awareness Improvement Project. [Photo by Muan-gun]
The Dementia Safety Center has distributed identification tags with unique numbers to 1,161 dementia patients at risk of going missing. For 90 patients with severe dementia, wandering detection devices with location tracking have been provided free of charge for two years to support quick discovery and return in case of disappearance, thereby safely protecting dementia patients and seniors.
Customized case management is a project that intensively manages dementia seniors' physical, psychological, and environmental needs to eliminate care blind spots. Currently, 928 dementia patients in care blind spots are selected and managed as case management targets.
For dementia patients in care blind spots or those with complex problems due to dementia, a Dementia Patient Customized Case Management Committee composed of external experts is organized and operated to review selection and extension.
Once selected as a case target, a cooperative system with related organizations is established to actively provide community resource linkage services, including health management (medication management, management of psychiatric behavioral symptoms), daily life management (provision of case management supplies, self-care skills education), and family support (family counseling, communication methods).
Muan-gun has trained three candidates for public guardianship for dementia to support dementia patients who have difficulty making decisions and have no family to use the adult guardianship system, ensuring human dignity by sharing case management for discovering wards.
The Dementia Safety Center provides professional cognitive stimulation programs to mild dementia patients not using long-term care services to promote social contact, protect dementia patients, and help reduce family caregiving burdens.
Since the opening of the Dementia Safety Center, 126 cognitive training programs have been provided to 774 high-risk dementia groups (those with cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment), contributing to reducing the likelihood of dementia onset and delaying its progression.
In May, Kim San, the governor of Muan County, participated in the Chime Overcome Walking Campaign and took commemorative photos with the residents. [Photo by Muan County]
Alleviating Care Burden and Emotional Support for Families of Dementia Patients
To improve families' and caregivers' understanding and caregiving capacity for dementia patients, the county operates dementia family (caregiver) counseling and care burden analysis, self-help groups, family programs, and companion dementia patient protection services.
Among 536 registered dementia family caregivers, counseling on difficulties and one-on-one care burden analysis are provided to identify causes of difficulties and care burdens and connect them to services that can alleviate these burdens. Face-to-face and telephone counseling, dementia-related information, and care burden analysis are actively offered to support caregivers.
To prevent emotional instability and social isolation of dementia patients' families, exchange forums are operated. Currently, 54 self-help groups and 70 family classes are running, providing information and education to reduce caregiving burdens. Healing programs have also been conducted 47 times for 151 participants, allowing dementia patients and caregivers to participate together to relieve mutual stress and foster emotional exchange.
Additionally, participation fees are supported for dementia patients and families to join the Mind Healing Program hosted by Jeollanam-do, which started in 2023.
In June, a healing program for families of dementia patients was conducted at the Mulmaji Healing Forest. [Photo by Muan-gun]
Creating a Dementia-Friendly Muan Together with the Community
Muan-gun is raising awareness about dementia and dispelling prejudices to create a dementia-friendly environment where people can live together with dementia, in cooperation with the local community.
Based on understanding dementia, 2,587 dementia partners have been trained as warm companions who consider patients and families in daily life. They take the lead in creating a healthy Muan-gun by greeting dementia patients first, promoting early dementia screening, participating in Dementia Safety Center campaigns, and volunteering.
Ten private businesses (3 pharmacies, 2 stationery stores, 1 caf?, 2 restaurants, 1 convenience store, 1 mill) have been designated as Dementia Safety Franchise stores, providing dementia information to customers and playing a role in establishing a dementia safety net system through reporting and temporary protection activities when missing dementia patients or wandering seniors are found.
Additionally, 13 dementia overcoming leading organizations (1 school, 4 welfare centers, 2 day care centers, 1 nursing home, 1 social welfare center, 1 Korean Senior Citizens Association, 1 NongHyup, 1 Seungdal Police Substation, 1 fire station) have been designated. All members complete dementia partner education and actively participate in dementia overcoming activities and Dementia Safety Center projects.
County Governor Kim San stated, "Since dementia management is difficult to handle by individuals or families alone, we will do our best to expand projects involving dementia patients, families, and local residents to create a 'Happy Muan without Dementia Worries.'"
Muan = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Oh Hwan-ju just8440@asiae.co.kr
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