New Alzheimer’s Association Report Examines Racial and Ethnic Attitudes on Alzheimer’s and Dementia Carea By: Lauren Livingston – In March, the Alzheimer’s Association released its 2021 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report along with a special report looking at the attitudes and perspectives of African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans and Native Americans on dementia care in America for the first time. This report revealed that discrimination is a barrier to Alzheimer’s and dementia care, which unfortunately does not come as a surprise. More than one-third of Black Americans (36%) and nearly one-fifth of Hispanic Americans (18%) and Asian Americans (19%), believe that discrimination would be a barrier to receiving Alzheimer’s care. In addition, half or more of non-White caregivers say they have experienced discrimination when seeking care for themselves or their loved ones. The 2021 Facts and Figures report also provides an indepth look at the latest national statistics on Alzheimer’s prevalence, incidence, mortality, costs of care and impact on caregivers. New disease-related statistics for Iowa revealed the following: ● Number of Iowa residents aged 65 and older living with Alzheimer’s: 66,000 ● Estimated number of Iowa residents living with Alzheimer’s in 2025: 73,000 ● Percentage change: 10.6% ● Statewide deaths from Alzheimer’s disease (2019): 1,344 ● Number of Iowa residents serving as unpaid family caregivers: 73,000 ● Total hours of unpaid care provided: 60 million ● Total value of unpaid care: 995 million Findings in the special report also reveal that non-White racial and ethnic populations expect and experience more barriers when accessing dementia care, have less trust in medical research and are less confident that they have access to health professionals who understand their ethnic and racial background and experiences. One eye-opening statistic shows that only half of Black Americans (53%) trust a future cure for Alzheimer’s will be shared equally regardless of race, color or ethnicity. “Despite ongoing efforts to address health and health care disparities in Alzheimer’s and dementia care, survey results show there is still a lot of work to be done,” said Carl V. Hill, Ph.D., MPH. chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer, Alzheimer’s Association. “Clearly, discrimination, lack of diversity among health care professionals and mistrust in medical research create significant barriers to care and demand the country’s full attention.” As you may know, health and socioeconomic disparities and systemic racism contribute to increased Alzheimer’s and dementia risk in communities of color. According to the report, older Blacks and Hispanics are also disproportionately more likely to have Alzheimer’s and other dementias. In addition, both groups are more likely to have missed diagnoses than older whites. The Alzheimer’s Association believes that bridging the racial and ethnic barriers in Alzheimer’s and dementia care is vital, and they are taking steps to help decrease the disparities. Some of these steps include: • Increasing diversity in dementia care. The Alzheimer’s Association surveys indicate
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