Local chapter of Alzheimer’s Association expands support to Latino communities in SLO County
–The California Central Coast Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association continues to offer free educational webinars taught in Spanish, in partnership with the Promotores Collaborative of San Luis Obispo County.
The chapter was able to secure funding in July of 2020 from the Community Foundation of SLO County to train promotores to teach the Alzheimer’s Association dementia caregiver education classes in Spanish, and the first two classes were taught by the end of September last year. Additional funding from SLO County was granted to further support the teaching of two Spanish classes each quarter: The Basics: Memory Loss, Dementia and Alzheimer’s (Lo Básico: La Pérdida de Memoria, LaDemencia, y La Enfermedad de Alzheimer) and The 10 Warning Signs of Alzheimer’s (10 Señales de Advertencia de la Enfermedad de Alzheimer).
“We have noticed that the Latinx community throughout SLO County is not very familiarized with Alzheimer’s or have very little knowledge about it,” said Erica Ruvalcaba-Heredia, director of programs for the Promotores Collaborative of San Luis Obispo. “For this reason, we are aware of how crucial it is to educate our community. Our goal is to provide the information, support and resources available to the entire family who have a loved one with Alzheimer’s.”
As noted in the Alzheimer’s Association 2021 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report, health and socioeconomic disparities and systemic racism contribute to increased Alzheimer’s and dementia risk in communities of color. According to the report, older Blacks and Hispanics are also disproportionately more likely to have Alzheimer’s and other dementias. In addition, both groups are more likely to have missed diagnoses than older whites.
Due to the large Latino population within San Luis Obispo County, the California Central Coast Chapter has made it a priority to reach these communities and spread awareness about its resources. Since switching to virtual platforms last year at the start of the pandemic, the Chapter has been able to increase its Spanish education offerings to all those within the Central Coast, with the help of promotores in SLO, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties.
“While it may be complex in many ways, Alzheimer’s disease is not a hopeless cause,” said Kathryn Cherkas, MIPH, director of programs for the Alzheimer’s Association Central Coast Chapter. “There is so much we can do to support those affected by this disease and get that support to minority communities; however, it has been a historical challenge. Our partnership with the promotores is one of the many concerted efforts we are making to support diverse communities, and we invite all members of the public to help inform and invigorate our work.”
“Some promotores have shared that they have a family member or relative who has either Alzheimer’s or dementia,” said Promotores Collaborative Coordinator Fernanda Lucas. “They have been able to share these experiences with the community when teaching the Azheimer’s classes. We have received positive feedback about these classes.”
Included in the 2021 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures is a special report, “Race, Ethnicity and Alzheimer’s in America,” which finds that non-White racial/ethnic populations expect and experience more barriers when accessing dementia care, have less trust in medical research and are less confident that they have access to health professionals who understand their ethnic and racial background and experiences.
In particular, two-thirds of Black Americans (66-percent) believe it is harder for them to get excellent care for Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias. Likewise, 2 in 5 Native Americans (40-percent) and Hispanic Americans (39-percent) believe their own race or ethnicity makes it harder to get care, as do one-third of Asian Americans (34-percent).
“Despite ongoing efforts to address health and health care disparities in Alzheimer’s and dementia care, survey results show there is still a lot of work to be done,” said Carl V. Hill, Ph.D., MPH. chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer, Alzheimer’s Association. “Clearly, discrimination, lack of diversity among health care professionals and mistrust in medical research create significant barriers to care and demand the country’s full attention.”
The 2021 Facts and Figures report also shows the latest statistics and information on Alzheimer’s prevalence, incidence, mortality, and cost of care in California and nationally, as well as statewide deaths attributable to Alzheimer’s and dementia spike during COVID-19.
New disease-related statistics for California revealed the following:
- Number of California residents aged 65 and older living with Alzheimer’s: 690,000
- Estimated number of California residents living with Alzheimer’s in 2025: 840,000
- Percentage change (between 2020 and 2025): 21.7-percent
- Statewide deaths from Alzheimer’s disease (2019): 16,859
- Number of California residents serving as unpaid family caregivers: 1.12 million
- Total hours of unpaid care provided: 884 million
- Total value of unpaid care: $18.126 billion
In California, there were 4,643 more deaths from Alzheimer’s and dementia in 2020 than compared to averages over the past five years – an 18.8-percent increase. The report highlights preliminary and anecdotal data indicating the COVID-19 pandemic is also having adverse effects on many family caregivers. It notes that pandemic-related caregiving challenges, including the shutdown of adult daycare centers and the inability of families to visit or communicate with relatives in long-term care settings have caused “emotional distress and other negative outcomes among caregivers.”
The California Central Coast Chapter is committed to supporting caregivers and all those affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia in the community. Its free support groups and education classes, both in English and Spanish, continue to remain virtual and can be found online: www.alz.org/cacentralcoast/helping_you.
For more information, visit alz.org/CaCentralCoast or call the 24/7 helpline at (800) 272-3900.
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