October: A Month To Remember: Requesting Maria Schriver To Report On LBD

Please forward this entry to as many people as possible. We all know the power of the Internet. Please use this power to gain recognition for Lewy Body Dementia!

This past week NBC's Today Show focused on Alzheimer's and devoted four days to special presentations on the disease.

Maria Schriver was a main presenter. As a well known personality, born into a highly recognizable family and having experienced coping with Alzheimer's, she is in a position of high visibility and her achievements in media can greatly benefit awareness of Dementia as THE disease, not just Alzheimer's. 

Dementia is like Cancer once was: Often not talked about, very little known about, consisting of varying types with some having greater advocacy and some types thought of as more "devastating".

The Brain is the New Frontier.  Before the CT and MRI, we had no means to see inside the body or the brain. Even now, age and related medical challenges may deter the ability to gain information in these ways.

Misdiagnosis of the type of Dementia and even greater numbers of individuals with undiagnosed Dementia are causes for great concern.

American Society must change its viewpoint of mental challenges, Dementia included. More Geriatric specialists are greatly needed and not just Doctors; Nurse Practitioners and RN's with this specialty are greatly needed. More in depth training of CNA's and those providing the basic quality of life daily care procedures is critical; they are the ones who often have first exposure to changing/changed or shifts, in physical and/or mental abilities.

Long Term Care Facilities with medical staff including Doctors aligned with the facilities must be required to evaluate accurately and thoroughly Senior medical conditions including the different forms of Dementia.

Continuing and ongoing education requirements for all types of Dementia should be more in depth, more current and inclusive within the medical community.

More educational opportunities for family members and caregivers of residents within Long Term Care facilities concerning Dementia and other medical and social challenges faced by residents should be required.

Unlike Cancer or Heart Disease, Brain Diseases affect an area of our body most people believe should be "controllable" and when not, something to be thankful for not having or seeking a pharmacological way to "handle and control" the "problem".

We believe knowledge is power.

Prominent people like Ms Schriver raising their voices for Dementia as a collective disease of many types, all requiring understanding and medical action, is critical to managing this devastating challenge undermining the quality of life of those suffering with the disease of Dementia.

Dementia breaks apart families, many of whom have members who simply do not understand the variations and challenges of different types of the disease.

Few people understand the differences between Alzheimer's and Lewy Body Dementia and how LBD can radically fluctuate; LBD has often been compared to a roller coaster ride.

Make October A Month To Remember

Lewy Body Dementia

Affects More Than 1.3 million families

 

With accurate diagnosis and reevaluation of those diagnosed with Alzheimer's, we believe LBD numbers of affected individuals and families will grow greatly.

 

Visit http://www.lbda.org/ to learn more

 

As a beginning, Ms Schriver, my daughter and I  hope you choose to continue to educate everyone through the power of public media this October with more specialized NBC programming on Lewy Body Dementia.