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. 2020 Jan 4;4(1):igz043.
doi: 10.1093/geroni/igz043. eCollection 2020.

The Public Health Road Map to Respond to the Growing Dementia Crisis

Benjamin S Olivari  1 , Molly E French  2 , Lisa C McGuire  1
Affiliations

The Public Health Road Map to Respond to the Growing Dementia Crisis

Benjamin S Olivari et al. Innov Aging. .

Abstract

As the proportion of older adults in the United States is projected to increase dramatically in the coming decades, it is imperative that public health address and maintain the cognitive health of this growing population. More than 5 million Americans live with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) today, and this number is projected to more than double by 2050. The public health community must be proactive in outlining the response to this growing crisis. Promoting cognitive decline risk reduction, early detection and diagnosis, and increasing the use and availability of timely data are critical components of this response. To prepare state, local, and tribal organizations, CDC and the Alzheimer's Association have developed a series of Road Maps that chart the public health response to dementia. Since the initial Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI) Road Map release in 2007, the Road Map has undergone two new iterations, with the most recent version, The HBI's State and Local Public Health Partnerships to Address Dementia: The 2018-2023 Road Map, released in late 2018. Over the past several years, significant advances were made in the science of risk reduction and early detection of ADRD. As a result, the public health response requires a life-course approach that focuses on reducing risk and identifying memory issues earlier to improve health outcomes. The most recent Road Map was revised to accommodate these strides in the science and to effect change at the policy, systems, and environment levels. The 2018-2023 Road Map identifies 25 actions that state and local public health agencies and their partners can implement to promote cognitive health and address cognitive impairment and the needs of caregivers. The actions are categorized into four traditional domains of public health, and the Road Map can help public health and its partners chart a course for a dementia-prepared future.

Keywords: Aging; Alzheimer’s disease; Brain health; Caregiving; Chronic conditions; Cognitive decline; Comorbidities; Health policy.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Life-course perspective on Alzheimer’s and related dementias and the role of public health. CDC and Alzheimer’s Association. State and Local Public Health Partnerships to Address Dementia: The 2018–2023 Road Map. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2018.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Ten Public Health Essential Services conceptual framework. Creative Services, CDC. 10 essential public health services graphic. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2018.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
2018–2023 Healthy Brain Initiative Road Map conceptual framework. CDC and Alzheimer’s Association. State and Local Public Health Partnerships to Address Dementia: The 2018–2023 Road Map. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2018.
Table 1.
Table 1.
2018–2023 Healthy Brain Initiative Road Map Actions and Example Public Health Implementations
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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