November 24, 2014

Today's Top Alzheimer's News

USA2 raises awareness of Alzheimer's in the African American community, Iowa's aging crisis, and Olivia Mastry talks about the importance of dementia friendly communities (read more). 
 

USA2 Spotlight

 

  • A November 23, 2014 Washington Post article reported on the higher risk of Alzheimer's in the African American community and USA2's AfricanAmericansAgainstAlzheimer's efforts to raise awareness of the disease and the importance of clinical trials. According to the article, "For historical reasons, even fewer want to participate in clinical research trials that could deliver benefits to themselves and future generations. “You just don’t hear about Alzheimer’s in the black community. There’s some stigma,” said Stephanie Monroe, associate director of the African American network at the D.C.-based nonprofit USAgainstAlzheimer’s, the event’s organizer. The organization was founded in 2010 by George Vradenburg, AOL’s former chief counsel, and his wife, Trish, a writer and former journalist. The effort to engage African Americans on Alzheimer’s comes as the U.S. population ages and becomes more diverse. More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, a number expected to more than triple by 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. In the Washington area, the number of people 65 or older with Alzheimer’s is expected to grow by nearly 40 percent, to 329,000, by 2025."
  • ICYMI: A November 22, 2014 CBS Baltimore article (reposted from the AP) reported on the efforts of employers cope with an aging workforce. According to CEOi's Drew Holzapfel, “We’re starting to see pockets of innovation…But with elder care, we’re finding that if you haven’t experienced it, you have a hard time understanding it.”
Regional 
  • A November 24, 2014 WHO TV segment and article (Iowa) highlighted Iowa's aging "crisis." According to Jennifer Margrett, Iowa State University Assistant Professor of Human Development and Family Studies, “Actually I think it is a crisis…We have a growing demographic of older adults in this state, we’re one of the oldest states, particularly when you look at the 75-85 plus age group."
  • A November 22, 2014 Star Tribune article (MN) highlighted the efforts of communities to become more "dementia friendly." According to the article, "Since the United States released its first national plan to address Alzheimer’s in 2012, communities have kicked off their own efforts to become “dementia-capable.” In Minnesota, ACT on Alzheimer’s, an advocacy group helping the state prepare for the increasing burden of age-related dementia, has given communities grants for their work, then used their experiences to create a tool kit to help others reproduce their process. The United Kingdom offered wonderful examples of dementia-friendly communities, but “there wasn’t any sort of tool of how to replicate it from community to community,” said Olivia Mastry, the executive lead of ACT on Alzheimer’s. “We added the replication ability.” The tool kit, which first instructs communities in building an “action team,” has sped things up, Mastry said. The group first gave grants to four communities. This year, it awarded 32."