LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM (April 15, 2019) — Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) has commissioned experts at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) to undertake the world’s largest survey on people’s attitudes to dementia.
- Dementia is the 7th leading cause of death worldwide and continues to rise
- Dementia became a trillion-dollar disease in 2018
- Every three seconds someone in the world develops dementia
ADI CEO Paola Barbarino said the survey, which is live on ADI’s website from April 15-June 15, will form the basis of ADI’s World Alzheimer Report 2019, to be released during World Alzheimer Month in September. “This is an important opportunity for us to discover what is happening in the wider community around dementia so we can better-understand what barriers exist globally and how to approach and overcome them,” Ms Barbarino said. “Dementia truly is a global health-crisis, and we need a global-response to this survey. Stigma remains the single largest and most-pervasive barrier facing the dementia community, preventing people from seeking advice and support. “It is hoped this survey and subsequent report will address stigma in all its forms, make clear what the consequences are for people living with dementia globally, and what can be done about it.” In some countries, the stigma regarding dementia results in people being chained up and excluded from society, and even in countries with dementia strategies and awareness-raising activity, we want to find out why people still delay going to seek help when they are worried about their own memory or that of friend or family member. ADI is seeking feedback from four key-groups: general public, health-care professionals, people living with dementia, and carers of people with dementia, in an attempt to create the world’s biggest survey on attitudes around dementia. The questions are predominantly multiple-choice and the survey is fully anonymous, accessible, and available both online and offline in multiple languages. It will only take around 10 minutes, but completing it will benefit people with dementia all over the world. “ADI wants this to be the world’s biggest survey about attitudes around dementia, so please participate and help us by spreading the word to anyone who may have an interest. This is the most important survey you can do this year,” Barbarino said. Dementia is one of the most significant global health-crises of our time — there are 50 million people living with dementia worldwide, which is expected to increase to 152 million people by 2050. Every three seconds someone develops dementia, yet most people with dementia do not receive a diagnosis or support. Deaths due to dementia more than doubled between 2000 and 2016, making it the fifth-leading cause of global deaths in 2016, compared to the fourteenth in 2000. Despite its prevalence, dementia is a silent killer, as stigma continues to be a major barrier to diagnosis, treatment, and care. Moreover, dementia’s prevalence is growing rapidly as the global population ages.
For more information, please contact:
Jake Hauritz Mana Communications T: +61 478 128 268 E: jh@manacommunications.com
Annie Bliss Alzheimer’s Disease International T: +44 20 7981 0886 E: A.Bliss@alz.co.uk
About Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI)ADI is the international federation of 94 Alzheimer associations around the world, in official relations with the World Health Organization. ADI's vision is prevention, care and inclusion today, and cure tomorrow. ADI believes that the key to winning the fight against dementia lies in a unique combination of global solutions and local knowledge. ADI works locally, by empowering Alzheimer associations to promote and offer care and support for persons with dementia and their care partners, while working globally to focus attention on dementia and campaign for policy change. For more information, please visit www.alz.co.uk.
