Dementia safety centers, built nationwide under the Moon Jae-in administration's "national responsibility for dementia" initiative, have become a test case for restructuring under the Lee Jae-myung administration.
Linked with the integrated care program the current administration is pursuing, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has begun work to redesign the functions, staffing, and scope of work of the 256 dementia safety centers nationwide to fit local characteristics.
Integrated care is a system that allows older adults or people with severe disabilities to receive comprehensive health care and caregiving services at home instead of in hospitals or nursing facilities, and it is one of President Lee Jae-myung's campaign pledges and state tasks. Attention is focusing on how the role of dementia safety centers, which have served as dedicated management hubs for people with dementia and their families, will change.
According to Ministry of Health and Welfare materials obtained by ChosunBiz from the office of Seo Mihwa, a lawmaker on the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee with the Democratic Party of Korea, on the 15th, the government launched a research project in Aug. on "establishing a support system by type for dementia safety centers."
This is being pursued to redesign the staffing and scope of work of dementia safety centers by region. Ulsan University has undertaken the research project, and the ministry expects results as early as within the year.
The ministry is considering options to operate dementia safety centers flexibly to match local characteristics.
A ministry official said, "In areas with weak medical infrastructure, such as farming and fishing communities, we can strengthen dementia screening functions, while in regions with sufficient medical infrastructure, we can provide diverse services by focusing more on activating family meetings and prevention programs rather than screenings."
In the 5th comprehensive dementia management plan (2026–2030) in Feb. this year, the government said it would increase the autonomy of dementia safety centers in this way.
The medical community generally assesses that dementia safety centers are filling gaps that cannot be resolved through hospital care alone. However, some say the system should be revamped to adjust low-efficiency programs and concentrate limited personnel and expertise on patients who actually need management.
Jeong Ji-hyang, a neurology professor at Ewha Womans University Seoul Hospital and head of the Alzheimer's Disease Innovative Treatment Center, said, "Dementia safety centers are improving access to dementia care and contributing to early detection of mild cognitive impairment, which is considered a prodromal stage of dementia."
Jeong noted, "However, the Cognitive Impairment Screening Test (CIST), which dementia safety centers currently implement nationwide, is also administered to people with normal daily functioning, which can reduce efficiency and waste personnel."
The point is to focus mild cognitive impairment screening on people who visit dementia safety centers after noticing their own memory decline or after family members detect changes, and to establish a system in which diagnosed patients are continuously managed for two to three years with education on lifestyle and dementia prevention methods.
Experts largely agree on the need to link dementia safety centers with integrated care, but they cautioned that the core functions of dementia safety centers must not be undermined.
For example, if cognitive decline is detected during the integrated care process, the patient can be referred to a dementia safety center for testing, and conversely, if a patient managed by a dementia safety center needs in-home medical care or household support, the need can be addressed through integrated care.
Park Seung-hee, a professor in the Department of Social Welfare at Sungkyunkwan University, said, "Dementia and elder care should not be viewed separately; the elder care system should naturally accommodate dementia care."
The medical community's position is that the core functions of dementia safety centers must not be reduced in this process. If personnel from dementia safety centers are diverted to tasks related to integrated care, it could affect core tasks such as counseling and case management for people with dementia and their families.
Choi Ho-jin, a neurology professor at Hanyang University Guri Hospital and planning director at the Korean Dementia Association, said, "While closely linking dementia safety centers with integrated care, they must be maintained as dedicated contact points for people with dementia and their families."
The ministry says it is at the stage of launching the research project and is not discussing whether to keep or abolish dementia safety centers.
A ministry official explained, "Because (for those covered by integrated care) home visit health management is carried out at the public health center level, there may be cases where it is conducted jointly in connection with dementia safety centers," adding, "Beyond that, personnel from dementia safety centers are not being assigned to integrated care-related tasks."