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This is an important time for Dementia advocacy . As COVID-19 has become a global health priority , other health diseases such as cancer and dementia have been highlighted in the media . This is a cause for concern . As information needs to be disseminated to families and caretakers , the work has only increased since COVID-19 .
Inclusion of older people in all aspects of governance is a key action to ensure that policies are developed and acted on for the greater good of vulnerable communities . Funding for dementia organisations is also imperative to ensure community groups have accessible funding to continue their projects for care homes and older people . Most were isolated during this time , which resulted in lack of human interaction .
There needs to be more support for creative engagement programmes that connect older people with the world
Let ’ s Talk . . . Dementia Awareness
with Rianna Patterson
Dementia Advocacy
around them , to improve their mood and quality of life .
Another area where people with dementia need to be amplified is through the media . We are consuming more social media content like never before . It is important that older people are celebrated and are shown in their truest form . An older man on a wheelchair is not the only indication of an older person , we are living in an aging population but a very lively one . We have a lot of people who are living well with dementia . Stories of hope are important to tell because it provides real hope for families who have someone with dementia .
It continues the conversation of seeking therapy and working towards a dementia diagnosis and hopefully a cure one day .
Let ' s talk Dementia Awareness . . . in the next issue , we ' ll examine the inclusion of people with dementia in local government and other areas .
Rianna Patterson is a personal development coach , TEDx speaker founder of a youth-led dementia charity called Dominica Dementia Foundation which she launched when she was 18 , in memory of her grandfather . She is also the film director of Dementia : The Island Journey film , a documentary on dementia in the Caribbean .