Cognitive health and aging are complex public health issues requiring individual attention and care. But at the University of Georgia, the CARE Center is working to improve understanding around these issues and improve aging across the state.
Panelists from the Cognitive Aging Research and Education (CARE) Center presented at the 14th annual State of the Public’s Health Conference held on Thursday, Oct. 23, at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education on the University of Georgia campus in Athens. Their panel discussion, “The State of the State on Cognitive Aging in Georgia,” covered the severity of cognitive health issues in Georgia, steps toward healthy longevity and patient outreach.
Andrew Kiselica, associate professor in the UGA College of Public Health’s Institute of Gerontology, provided an overview of cognitive health across the state. In many areas, patients living with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia face challenges when it comes to accessing needed medications and specialized doctors.
These challenges include access through the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
“Just because you’re eligible for ADA doesn’t mean you’re going to get it,” said Kiselica.
Patients who are eligible for care through ADA first need a formal diagnosis from their doctor, Kiselica said. And while 12% of Georgians over the age of 45 report some symptoms of cognitive decline, many cannot access doctors who can provide that diagnosis.
The session also included a patient who received an Alzheimer’s diagnosis a few years ago. He recalled mixing up the days of operation for the post office, remembering when services were held at church, and forgetting his dog was in the car after driving around with his pet.
“Those kinds of things just kind of started adding up, ” said the patient. “I think probably over the last couple of years.”
After visiting the doctor, he got a formal diagnosis. It came as a shock, and he recalled crying in the car before heading home. Even after receiving a diagnosis, appointments typically came with wait times between four and seven months.
All of these instances led to the UGA CARE Center.
“If it wasn’t for the CARE Center, I’m not sure the ball would ever start rolling,” he said. “That was the best thing about you guys.”
Rounding out the panel, Lisa Renzi-Hammond, a Director and Co-Director of Cognitive Research and Education at the UGA’s Institute of Gerontology shared notes of optimism and plans for the future. This included how UGA’s CARE Center is helping patients and their families better handle dementia and Alzheimer’s.
For example, Dr. Hammond touched on a situation where they took veggie meters out into Washington County, to check the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which are factors of Alzheimer’s. This was to determine how likely the risk of Alzheimer’s would appear in the area. Another main point she discussed was trying to help more people in the rural communities of Georgia by describing the need for more cognitive health facilities and neurologists in those towns.
“It takes a village to work with a disease like Alzheimer’s disease,” said Rezi-Hammond. “So I am deeply optimistic when we see students inside our building who don’t think they’re going to ever have anything to do with a rural community, go out in Georgia and go.”
By Russell McCloud Jr.
