Identifying performance measures, indicators and targets to monitor and evaluate dementia strategies
Publication year: 2018
Dementia is a complex condition and refers to
“progressive brain syndromes which affect memory,
thinking, behavior and emotion.”(1) While the
experience of dementia is different for each person, it
eventually progresses to an individual not being able to
care for themselves and requiring assistance with all
aspects of their daily life.(1) Accounting for
approximately 50% to 60% of all cases of dementia,
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common of the more
than 100 known forms of dementia. Common
symptoms of all forms of dementia include memory loss
(e.g., inability to recall details of recent events or
conversations, not recognizing or knowing family
members’ names), frequent difficulty in finding words
(e.g., with pauses or substitutions when finding words)
or understanding what others are saying, not being to
perform routine tasks, and changes in personality or
mood