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A three-year strategic plan for reducing the risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, and for caring for the people affected by it was announced Thursday by the New Brunswick government.
The plan includes $1 million in funding for the Alzheimer Society of New Brunswick to aid in implementation.
“This is a plan that focuses on people,” Premier Susan Holt said, adding that the plan focuses on public education and awareness, timely diagnosis, and support for patients and their families and caregivers.
Holt said the plan, which she billed as a first for the province, drew on feedback from more than 1,700 people, including those living with dementia, their care partners and health-care professionals.
New Brunswick has released a three-year plan to bolster support for people who have Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, their caretakers and prevention programming.
The report addresses risk reduction, public education and awareness, workforce training and support, timely diagnoses and supports for people with dementia and their caregivers.
Holt said many people with dementia described it as lonely. Many also said they didn’t get diagnosed soon enough, had a hard time knowing where to get help, and had to face a stigma around their condition.
Lynne Chantal-Boudreau, the minister responsible for seniors, said care would be “accessible, affordable and rooted in collaboration.”
“Many of us have grandparents, friends and neighbours travelling this journey,” Boudreau said.
She said in French that it was important to highlight that rural New Brunswickers living with Alzheimer’s will receive the same care and quality of life under the plan.
Chandra MacBean, executive director of the Alzheimer Society of New Brunswick, said that when people with the disease and their families have access to timely information, “they are better able to manage the journey with confidence, dignity and hope for much longer than they would otherwise.”
She added that strong community support for those living with dementia allows people to remain in their homes longer rather than moving into a health-care centre.
“And that’s what New Brunswickers want — to live in their communities for as long as possible, surrounded by the people and places that matter most,” MacBean said.
Asked by reporters about delays getting diagnosed, MacBean said that in some communities it can take six to nine months, and in other places it can more than a year.
Funding will be used for some existing programs, she said, but also will include some new programs such as education initiatives.
Jane Van Horne, a retired long-term-care nurse from Campbellton whose father had Dementia before passing away, and whose husband now has it, spoke at the announcement about her support for the plan.
“Dementia is so unique to each individual and each family who struggle with the diagnosis,” Van Horne said.
“I’ve always been a firm believer in aging in place, and particularly in cases in the types of dementia when it can be possible.
“New Brunswickers do want to remain in their homes for the most part, but families need to be supported, empowered and most of all, encouraged.”
MacBean said an estimated 12,000 New Brunswickers have a dementia diagnosis.
“But if you think of the ripple effect of a diagnosis and the care that happens, it’s usually four to six additional people that help to support that individual to live in community. So the effects are quite far reaching.”
The plan said many families living with dementia often rely on community-based programs and health services, which can “vary widely by location.”
It also said nursing home waitlists remain long, families are often unaware of available respite care programs, and that financial challenges can often compound challenges with care.
