19th International Conference of ADI

Discovering dementia

The 2003 ADI conference took place in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The conference was the first international dementia conference to take place in the Caribbean.

[photo] Henry Brodaty, Milagros Ortiz Bosh, Daisy Acosta and Magdelena Frias at the opening ceremony

Some 500 years after Christopher Columbus discovered the New World when he arrived in the Dominican Republic, ADI has been 'Discovering dementia' at its 19th annual conference, hosted by the Asociacion Dominicana Alzheimer.

Participants were welcomed to the conference by Milagros Ortiz Bosh, Vice President of the Dominican Republic. The opening ceremony explored the concept of journeys. Roberto Garcia took us through a journey of discoveries, reminding each of us that the work we do 'deals with one of the most important health issues of our time and we have to discover the best way to address it together'. Richard Mayeux described a genetic study in the Dominican Republic and Nori Graham took participants through the journey of some people whose lives have been touched by dementia, demonstrating the similarities in experiences across countries and cultures.

[photo] James McKillop and his wife Maureen from Scotland talked about their involvement since James' diagnosis of dementia

ADI's conference is unique in that it brings researchers and medical professionals, people with dementia and their families, and staff and volunteers from Alzheimer associations from around the world together under one roof to learn from each other's perspectives. This year was no different.

Leading researchers such as Ingmar Skoog, Deborah Gustafson and Peter Whitehouse shared the latest thinking about vascular dementia, the link between obesity and Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment. James McKillop from Scotland and Marilyn Truscott from Canada spoke about the work they are doing with their Alzheimer associations and the changes they have made to their lives since being diagnosed with dementia.

[photo] Wendy Fleming of Alzheimers New Zealand tells a delegate about the work of the association

Delegates also had the opportunity to learn about the work of Alzheimer associations around the world by visiting their exhibition stands during the ADI showcase. A range of projects were displayed including information materials, models of best practice and World Alzheimer's Day™ activities.

The session on quality of life - now a regular feature at ADI conferences - explored the relationship between the person with dementia and their carer. Both people with dementia and carers participated in this interactive session, giving moving accounts of their lives and feelings towards each other before and after a diagnosis of dementia.

[photo] Booy Escalona from Aruba, and Anneke Matil and Gerda Havertong from Surinam who are setting up Alzheimer associations

The ADI conference has been an opportunity for the 10/66 Dementia Research Group to meet since its foundation in 1998. This year the Group shared news about the next phase of its work - population based studies of the prevalence and impact of dementia and its risk factors in rural and urban centres in Cuba, Brazil, Dominican Republic, India and China.

With about 400 attendees, the conference had an intimate feel to it. It was a real opportunity for participants to get to know each other, especially individuals from the Caribbean who are just setting up Alzheimer associations. As one participant said 'for me the conference was most positive because of its inclusion of younger people with dementia. I've already made use of what I've learned whilst with you - that worldwide perspective is so very helpful.'

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