Health Promotion Strategy for Dementia

The health issue addressed in this health promotion strategy paper is dementia which is a prevalent health condition in people aged 65 years and older. This syndrome is associated with memory loss, cognitive impairment, and loss of capability of independent living. It is a significant factor in increased mortality and morbidity due to the difficulties in completing daily tasks. In addition, such secondary problems as “injuries and falls, mobility difficulties, nutritional problems, depression, delirium, adverse medication reactions, communication difficulties” are associated with dementia (Testad et al., 2020, p. 2). Thus, the issue is a significant public health concern on a global and community scale.

The world population is becoming older, which makes the share of the elderly higher; since dementia is an issue predominantly faced by the elderly, the number of cases of this disease increases each year. In Miami-Dade County, 185.7 deaths per 100000 persons are caused by dementia (“Summary data for county: Miami-Dade,” 2021). It is imperative to implement health promotion strategies to reduce dementia risks and increase people’s awareness about the issue.

The objectives of the strategy are as follows:

• To educate people with early-stage dementia and their caregivers about the condition;
• To reduce risks of severe dementia;
• To initiate social places for meetings for people with dementia;
• To promote a healthy and active lifestyle.

The mission of the strategy is to increase the community’s awareness about dementia and develop skills for managing the condition. The stakeholders would include health care professionals, volunteers, and not-for-profit organizations. Health care workers, including physicians and nurses, will perform as consultants and lecturers for educational purposes. Volunteers with medical experts will perform the roles of assistance in meetings. Non-for-profit organizations will be used as platforms for population involvement, meeting locations, and the organization of educational and promotional interventions.

To assess the community members’ experiences associated with dementia, the health care worker will conduct a pre-intervention survey to identify the level of knowledge about the issue and the coping skills. The short-term goals are to educate people about the causes and manifestations of dementia, facilitate an active lifestyle, and increase awareness about risks (Odzakovic et al., 2021). The long-term goals for the strategy are to develop sustained dementia management skills in the population improve their capabilities of socializing on a regular basis.

The steps to planning and organize the proposed strategy are as follows:

• Research effective interventions for dementia risk reduction and awareness-raising.
• Incorporate research results with the strategic goals.
• Develop separate interventions for:
  • Education for dementia patients and their caregivers
  • Risk reduction techniques
  • Socializing meetings
  • Active lifestyle promotion
• Engage stakeholders
• Enroll eligible community members through advertising
• Arrange regular interventions.

For the purposes of measuring and tracking the progress during the strategy implementation process, the health care worker will conduct a pre-and post-intervention assessment. I will be implemented via surveys and interviews with the aim of retrieving the community’s improvements over time. Furthermore, the statistical data on epidemiology will be used to track the outcomes of the strategy. It will allow for identifying possible drawbacks and making necessary adjustments for better results in the long-term perspective.

In conclusion, the proposed health promotion strategy for dementia is designed to mitigate the risks and elevate the burden of this disease from community members. The goals of the strategy and the premises of the proposed interventions are validated by research evidence and best practices in dementia-related health promotion. The program is multifaceted and complex, which validates its far-reaching results with the ultimate reduction of morbidity and mortality in the community.

References

Odzakovic, E., Hellström, I., Nedlund, A. C., & Kullberg, A. (2021). Health promotion initiative: A dementia-friendly local community in Sweden. Dementia, 20(6), 1971-1987.

Summary data for county: Miami-Dade. (2021). Miami Matters. Web.

Testad, I., Kajander, M., Gjestsen, M. T., & Dalen, I. (2020). Health promotion intervention for people with early‐stage dementia: A quasi‐experimental study. Brain and Behavior, 10(12), 1-8.