By Jacki Moss
Special to the Tribune
Old Timer's Disease. Senility. Dementia. Alzheimer's. No matter what you call it, forgetfulness and confusion that can go hand in hand with aging can be scary for you and your family members.
Tammy Been, recreation coordinator at NHC Oakwood assures us, though, that as we age, we will most likely show signs of forgetfulness, but that doesn't necessarily mean that we are destined to develop Alzheimer's. Occasionally forgetting where you left your car keys is aggravating, but not inevitably a sign of Alzheimer's. Forgetting what a car is, however, may be an indication of something more serious going on.
"This is not necessarily a disease of forgetfulness; it's more about developing an inability to find words and to relate to familiar objects and people," Been said. And, as the Alzheimer's Association reminds us, Alzheimer's is not just memory loss -- Alzheimer's kills. It cannot be halted or reversed, unlike other some dementia-related diseases.
Been knows all too well the impact Alzheimer's. Not only does she know the disease from a professional standpoint, she has felt its repercussions personally, as well.
"I lost two grandfathers to Alzheimer's," she says. "It takes a tremendous toll on people who have the disease and their families."
Been, an Alzheimer's Association Support Group Facilitator and Ambassador for Mid-South, and Patsy Graves, recreation coordinator at NHC Lewisburg, recently attended the Alzheimer's Advocacy Forum in Washington, D.C. While there, they gathered information about this sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
"It is the most expensive disease in terms of Medicare and Medicaid spending, and unpaid care-giving hours by family members and spouses. Right now, one in three seniors -- people 65 years or older -- dies from Alzheimer's or its related dementia," said Been.
She notes that those grim statistics are not improving.
"We are a graying society, and Baby Boomers are the most at-risk population for this disease. While many other diseases are decreasing in death rates, Alzheimer's is rising. Part of the problem is that we do not know the cause of the disease. Today, there is no known prevention or cure, and there are no clear guidelines about how to treat it. Although there are some pharmaceuticals that may mildly help, we focus mostly on managing safety awareness issues, behaviors, its complication of other disease processes, overall wellness and daily life activities for people who have the disease. It's a 24-hour-a-day management," she said.
While at the conference, Been and Graves met with Tennessee's elected officials and their staff to educate them about the disease and to appeal to them for meaningful action to push Alzheimer's into the public spotlight.
"This is important to us as a community, because Tennessee ranks fifth for the incidence of Alzheimer's in the United States," she explains. "We need to know more, much more, about this disease. We need much more research. If we could delay the average onset of Alzheimer's in people by just five years, it could cut the spending on it by half," Been noted.
The Health Outcomes, Planning, and Education (HOPE) for Alzheimer's Act (S.709/H.R. 1507) is one of the Alzheimer's Association's top federal priorities for the 113th Congress. The Act hopes to improve the outcomes for people who have the disease and their caregivers, develop better diagnosis methods, and then set in place care planning services.
At the conference Been and Graves also met Glen Campbell, who received the Sargent and Eunice Shriver Profiles in Dignity Award at the conference for his activities educating people about Alzheimer's.
"There are very few people in our community who are not affected by Alzheimer's in some way. To be able to represent my community in at the conference was a great privilege," Been says.
She encourages people who have questions or concerns about themselves or a family member in regard to Alzheimer's to contact a professional. "They may call me at 359-3563 or e-mail me at "tbeen@nhcoakwood.com," said Been.
She also suggests looking at the Alzheimer's Association website at www.alz.org. "That site has a wealth of information including resources, tools and guidance," she concluded.
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