With an estimated 5.8 million individuals in the United States living with Alzheimer’s disease and an increasing number of people aged 65 and older, the annual number of new cases of Alzheimer’s and related dementias (ADRD) is projected to grow from 56 million to 88 million by 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
The large number of people with dementia combined with their high use of medical and long-term care makes it a costly condition for individuals, families, Medicare and Medicaid. Many people with dementia live alone, which can increase their risk of malnutrition, injury, neglect, exploitation, and unmet needs. In addition, untrained caregivers may not know how to respond to the behavioral symptoms that are common in those with dementia.
With the population of people living with dementia rising and no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, person- and family-centered care and training is vital. Fortunately, there are effective strategies to help maintain cognitive function, reduce behavior symptoms, prevent acute care crises, and delay functional decline.
A Comprehensive Resource Center for Grant-Funded Programs Focused on Care Systems and Caregivers
Funded by the Administration on Aging/Administration for Community Living (AoA/ACL) and based at RTI, the National Alzheimer’s and Dementia Resource Center (NADRC) provides individualized technical assistance, reports, and other resources to projects that work to improve services to people with dementia and their caregivers. As project co-directors, Elizabeth Gould and Sari Shuman direct the Resource Center team comprised of Kate Gordon, Stephanie Hughes, Melissa Hunter, Molly Knowles, Heather Menne, Madeline Murray, and Patty Yuen.
Our Resource Center provides expert technical assistance to the Administration on Aging/Administration for Community Living and ACL's Alzheimer's disease program grantees. These programs work to establish dementia-capable care systems, provide services to special populations and training to staff serving persons with living with dementia, and offer consultation and training for family caregivers.
Resources produced by NADRC cover critical topics for programs and individual care providers, including:
- Dementia-capable systems
- Supportive services for people living with dementia
- Supportive services for caregivers
- Evidence-based caregiver interventions
- Behavioral interventions for people living with dementia
- Home- and community-based services for people living with dementia
- Person-centered dementia care
- Training of health care providers and other professionals
- Data collection and reporting
- Program evaluation
- Issues related to dual-eligibles
Delivering Person-Centered Services and Resources That Promote Independence and Safety
Between 2008 and 2020, the AoA/ACL funded over 200 Alzheimer’s disease program grantees across the nation. The grants support efforts at the state and local level to expand the availability of home and community-based services for persons living with dementia and their caregivers.
In addition to supporting these projects, our team at RTI International provides consultation on evaluation planning and design, data collection procedures, and data analyses, as well as open trainings via teleconference on key topics.
The Resource Center has a comprehensive library consisting of archived webinars and publications that include issue briefs, toolkits, case studies, and reports. In addition, group listservs and an article resource list help grantees communicate and access resources on a regular basis.
These resources assist grantees, caregivers, and others in the aging network improve and expand on person-centered care for the growing population of people living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.