MONDAY, September 23, 2013 — Watching a loved one succumb to the mental decline of dementia or Alzheimer's disease is an incredibly painful process, but it is a process the World Alzheimer's Report 2013 hopes to make easier for both caretakers and those with the disease. The report, released last week, highlights how more and more people are getting the disease, which is increasing health care costs and placing an inordinate burden on caretakers.
Currently, the cost of dementia on the world is equal to 1 percent of global GDP, or roughly $600 billion. By 2050, 227 million adults are expected to require a care giver to help them cope with the aging process, and half of them will have dementia. Additionally, 80 percent of older adults in who currently live nursing homes already have the disease.
Because older adults are living longer than they ever have before, more people are living long enough to get the disease (the risk of the disease increases as people age), Richard Lipton, MD, professor and vice chair of neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said. Alzheimer’s disease research is chronically underfunded, he said.
The report calls for more funding to both research on Alzheimer's disease treatment and prevention.
“If research funding were proportionate to societal disease burden, then the investment on research into dementia prevention and treatment would need to be increased up to tenfold in order to achieve parity with current investment on research into cancer and cardiovascular disease,” said Martin Prince, professor at King’s College London and author of the report.
The report also calls for more effort towards improving the quality of care given to individuals with the disease. This could include each country setting up national standards detailing the level of care that is appropriate. Additionally,improving care could also center on helping the care givers themselves. Caring for someone with Alzheimer's is often more time-consuming, more costly, and more straining for the care givers.
For Eric Reiman, MD, executive director of Banner Alzheimer’s Institute in Phoenix, Ariz., the report hits on both of Banner’s goals — that of the clinical trial to accelerate a prevention therapy, and another goal to “establish a new standard of care for patients and care givers.”
According to the report, ways to improve care could include combining social services with health care services, better training for caregivers, and possible reimbursement for family members caring for loved ones with the disease.
Even though most older adults have stated they would like to age at home, this often doesn't happen because of the burden this places on caretakers, which often spurs placement in a care facility, said Roger Baumgart, CEO of Home Instead Senior Care in a statement. "Interventions that provide support, education and training for caregivers have considerable potential to reduce or delay transition into institutional settings," he said.
Dr. Reiman emphasized that even though his research is currently focused on prevention, he cannot give up on his clinical patients who already have the disease. His clinic attempts to provide comprehensive care not only for the patients, but also for caregivers, who receive a brunt of the stress associated with the disease.
"We think there’s a special need to help navigate the course of the illness for family caregivers," he said, noting that in his clinic, they concentrate on serving both the patient and the caretaker.
Reiman noted that half the people who are caring for loved ones with Alzheimer's suffer from depression themselves. Reiman thinks that caring for these people could have the effect of improving the care those with the disease are receiving, he said. "I applaud the World Alzheimer's Report for making that point," he said.