Myongji Hospital announced that it was honored with the "Gold Award" in recognition of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts in dementia care at the International Hospital Federation (IHF) Awards 2023, which took place last Thursday in Lisbon, Portugal.

Myongji Hospital's project for dementia care, "Centenarian’s Good Memory School," received the Gold Award in the CSR category for its decade-long efforts in preventing and managing dementia.

IHF annually evaluates the capabilities, strategies, and performance of healthcare organizations around the world, and this year, more than 500 hospitals from 43 countries competed for the award.

With this award, Myongji Hospital has won the IHF Awards four times since 2015, the first year of the IHF Awards.

In 2013, Myongji Hospital became the pioneering private hospital to introduce a Public Health Service Team. As a central initiative, the hospital launched the Centenarian’s Good Memory School project, aimed at offering systematic dementia prevention and management services in collaboration with the community.

The project is managed by a team comprising the Department of Mental Health, Neurology, Rehabilitation, Geriatrics Center, Art Therapy Center, and the Public Health Service Team. It has developed a cognitive art therapy program, which serves as a non-drug treatment option.

Specifically, the project is dedicated to disseminating its expertise in the management of dementia patients nationwide. To achieve this goal, it has standardized its accumulated experience in the field and established an integrated dementia management model that can be applied universally.

"Myongji Hospital has been delivering comprehensive dementia care services in collaboration with the community for the past decade," said Myongji Hospital Chairman Lee Wang-jun. "The public engagement of private hospitals can play a vital role in addressing the shortage of essential medical care, and we are committed to taking a leading role in bolstering public healthcare."