Joe and Shirley, retired schoolteachers, like to keep busy. They visit different places around Edmonton and enjoy going for coffee. They’re determined to keep booking cruises until someone tells them to stop.
But Joe’s memory, shaky from old hockey concussions, has gotten much worse over the past nine years — sometimes he forgets things within minutes. Although he hasn’t been officially diagnosed with dementia, his driver’s license wasn’t renewed, and they’ve been told to bolster their support network. His friends don’t invite him hunting anymore. He loves to go for walks but lately he’s been getting lost, so Shirley goes with him.
And it’s only going to get worse.
Almost 700,000 Canadians are living with dementia, a number that’s projected to reach one million by 2030. While most individuals with dementia receive care from loved ones at home, government funding historically prioritizes institutional care for later stages of the disease.
A recently announced initiative aims to reshape dementia care in Alberta. The Dementia Pathways Project is a multi-year initiative with the first two years funded by the University Hospital Foundation and supported by a $1 million grant from the Government of Alberta’s Primary Care Innovation Fund. The project will be led by University of Alberta researchers Dr. Adrian Wagg and Dr. Holly Symonds-Brown with three main goals:
Better care from day one: By creating clear clinical pathways, the project aims to ensure people receive faster diagnoses and more coordinated support.
A provincial dementia registry: A single, shared database will connect people with clinical trials, accelerate research, and facilitate the sharing of information across the province.
Help finding the right supports: The project will develop user-friendly tools to help people with dementia and their care partners easily find programs, services and opportunities for social connection.
The McLeod River Primary Care Network and the Kaye Family Medicine Clinic in Edmonton will be the first to pilot the project’s integration into the health-care system.
“Dementia is a dreaded diagnosis,” says Dr. Symonds-Brown. “But with a clear pathway to the right programs, it doesn’t have to be.”
For Joe and Shirley, it could be just what they need.
To learn more or to donate, visit givetouhf.ca/hope.
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