Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures, Essay Example

One of the first steps in providing a community assessment of the chosen population is to a comprehensive assessment of the chosen community. This is accomplished using the windshield survey, which is conducted by making observations visually from a driving car through the neighborhood. Windshield surveys can be used in conjunction with walking surveys that can systematically observed on foot, each can be appropriate in understanding the general community and the specific aspect or condition of it. Data collection and valuable information acquired during the windshield survey can be utilized to highlight the health-related needs of the community chosen, and examine the need for additional health services and resources for the communities. In understanding the chosen community of dementia and Alzheimer’ this paper will examine the condition, nature, and age of the community’s available facilities, infrastructures, and the absence of presence of function care faculties. In addition, the use, condition, and location of available resources, and other essential components that will be used in assessing the needs of the community. The windshield theory will be conducted using the quantitative data that will be supported by the direct qualitative observations that will help to reveal the issues within the community.

Dementia is an encompassing term in which consist of a group of the cognitive illnesses that are typically regarded for difficulty in the domains of object recognition, motor activity, language, memory impairment, and the disturbance of execution function, that includes the ability to abstract, organize, and plan. For patients that are diagnosed with dementia, they are generally older individuals, which can also be diagnosed for Alzheimer disease, a common form. For Alzheimer patients it is a progressive disease of the brain, in which people start by losing parts of their memory, then progresses to thinking ability, decision making, lack of capability to perform daily activities, and recognize love ones.  Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are serious syndromes in which affect over 47.6 million people around the world, and annually have over 7 million new cases. (WHO, 2015) Dementia and Alzheimer is one of the major causes of dependency and disability among older people throughout the world. Dementia has serious impact on society, families, and caregivers, economically, socially, psychologically, and physically. What is critical to the community is there is often a lack of general awareness and understanding of dementia and other disorders that result in barriers and stigmatization to care and diagnosis. The underlying issues is that it is the only cause of death for United States’ top ten that cannot be slowed, cured, or prevented. Almost two-thirds of Americans that are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease are women, and just about one in three senior citizens die of Dementia or Alzheimer’s. (ALZ, 2015)

In the United States Alzheimer’s disease ranks as the sixth leading cause of death, but only 45 percent of people, including their caregivers are told of their diagnosis, which leaves over half not aware of their diagnosis. That leads to increase in hospital costs in which doctors have either misdiagnosed or not diagnosed them, in which Alzheimer and other dementias will cost the US over $225 billion, with costs expected to rise to $1.1 trillion by 2050. (ALZ, 2015) It is also estimated that by 2050, the US age group, 65 and over will make up 20%, in which over 11 million will be living with Alzheimer and other dementias. These issues and facts alone, bring significance to understanding the chosen population more critically by looking at the available resources, and developing an appropriate and realistic plan of care that is targeted at resolving the inherent issues in the community. This assessment will include information collected from different care facilities and community profile that will be beneficial to the community.

References

2015 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures. (2015). ALZ. Retrieved from http://www.alz.org/facts/overview.asp

Dementia. (2015). WHO. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs362/en/

Dementia/Alzheimer’s Disease. (2015). CDC. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/basics/mental-illness/dementia.htm