Incheon holds dementia awareness event to prevent patient disappearances

Incheon Metropolitan City and the Incheon Dementia Center held the ‘2026 Incheon Dementia Overcoming Day Commemorative Event’ at the SSG Landers Field to raise awareness and prevent the disappearance of dementia patients.

Under the theme ‘Together, Three Million Informants,’ the event collaborated with the SSG Landers baseball team and TBN Gyeongin Traffic Broadcasting. To promote social inclusion, Incheon Mayor Park Chan-dae and an individual living with early-onset dementia participated in the ceremonial first pitch and hit. Musical actress Hong Ji-min, who has a mother living with dementia, also participated to draw attention to the challenges faced by families.

During the baseball game, interactive programs were conducted, including simulated missing person announcements and a quiz on emergency response protocols. SSG Landers players wore hats featuring patches for ‘elderly people prone to wandering,’ and home run celebrations included distributing dementia partner mascots. Various local health centers and hospitals also operated booths to provide information on support services and dementia-related experiences.