The Peter Salama Refugee MPH Scholarship  in Humanitarian Health

Today (September 21st) is World Alzheimer’s Day. The objective of World Alzheimer’s Day is to raise awareness, raise issues faced by people affected by dementia and to support them. World Alzheimer’s Day was launched in 1994.

Theme

The theme of World Alzheimer’s Day 2020 is “Let’s talk about dementia” This year the priority should be given to break down the fear and the stigma and we encourage people to seek out information, support and advice – something which has become acutely necessary during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Dementia

Dementia is a collective name for progressive degenerative brain syndromes which affect memory, thinking, behaviour and emotion. Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia are the most common types of dementia, responsible for up to 90% of cases of dementia.
Symptoms may include:
• loss of memory
• difficulty in finding the right words or understanding what people are saying
• difficulty in performing previously routine tasks
• personality and mood changes

COVID-19 and dementia

• The COVID-19 outbreak has highlighted the lack of preparedness of health systems
  globally to provide routine services and support to people living with chronic conditions
  such as dementia.
• During lockdown and restrictions, it’s essential that older people, especially those living
  with dementia, are not socially excluded.
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative that people keep talking about dementia,
  seeking out information, advice and support.
• Lack of knowledge about dementia leads to inaccurate assumptions about its effects on
  the person and their family and negative stereotypes about how a person with dementia
  will behave.
• Talking about dementia leads to better planning and to the access of supports and services to improve the life of people living with dementia and their carers and families.
• Stigma and negative attitudes around dementia persist in every country. This World Alzheimer’s Month, we want to talk about it.

Statistics

• There are over 50 million people around the world living with dementia.
• Someone in the world develops dementia every 3 seconds.
• The number of people living with dementia is predicted to triple, rising to 152 million by
  2050.
• The economic burden of dementia is US$1trillion dollars every year, a figure that will
  double by 2050.
• Almost 80% of the general public are concerned about developing dementia at some
  point and 1 in 4 people think that there is nothing we can do to prevent dementia.
• 35% of carers across the world said that they have hidden the diagnosis of dementia of a
  family member.
• Over 50% of carers globally say their health has suffered as a result of their caring responsibilities even whilst expressing positive sentiments about their role.
• Almost 62% of healthcare providers worldwide think that dementia is part of normal ageing.

World Alzheimer’s Month

September is World Alzheimer’s Month, an international campaign to raise dementia awareness and challenge stigma. Each year, Alzheimer associations from around the world unite to organise advocacy and information provision events, as well as Memory Walks and fundraising days.

September is World Alzheimer’s Month! #WorldAlzMonth

Source of info: https://www.worldalzmonth.org

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