Students connect with memory-imparied seniors
The Burlington Free Press reports that students from Charlotte Central School have just finished participating in the Memory Bridge Initiative, a 12-week program created by The Foundation for Alzheimer's and Cultural Memory that links middle- and high-school students with people with Alzheimer's disease in residential care settings. Through the program students gain a better understanding of memory impairment and learn to communicate with the memory-impaired. The program also "provides students with an opportunity to grow socially and emotionally, and for those with Alzheimer's, offers meaningful interaction and community involvement."
VCF Staff
Number of Vermonters with Alzheimer's expected to increase
The Burlington Free Press reports that about 10,000 to 11,000 of the Vermont's residents have Alzheimer’s disease, "a progressive, terminal disease that destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior, and eventually, the body’s ability to function." Dr. William Pendlebury, professor of pathology and neurology and medical director of the Memory Center at Fletcher Allen Health Care, said he "anticipates the prevalence of the disease [to] triple during the next 20 to 30 years." He noted that the problem will be compounded in Vermont because of the state’s growing aging population. Indeed, an estimated 23,800 additional Vermont baby boomers are expected to develop the disease during their lifetimes.
For this reason, Jeff Maker, executive director of the Vermont Alzheimer’s Association, believes that "it’s time to increase awareness about Alzheimer’s — from memory-building measures to treatments and research toward a cure — and to forge partnerships linking municipal, state and government agencies with health care systems and other organizations to develop support programs that reach those with dementia, their families and caregivers throughout the state."
Working Toward a Cure
"A study of new treatment is under way at Fletcher Allen Health Care, and caregivers at local senior living facilities are developing new ways to communicate with those afflicted." For example, the "'Memory Bridge' initiative at The Arbors residential facility in Shelburne [is] an effort to teach people how to create meaningful relationships with those affected by dementia. The program, created by the Foundation for Alzheimer’s and Cultural Memory, links middle and high school students with those in residential care settings for companionship. Its goal is to cultivate a better understanding of memory impairment, including the depths of memory dementia doesn’t reach, by teaching methods to communicate with the memory-impaired in emotionally meaningful ways. Though designed for teens, the listening and communication techniques apply to all ages and are becoming widespread among those caring for Alzheimer’s patients."