In 2023 there were 84,000 dementia family caregivers, providing 142 million hours of unpaid care valued at $2.68 billion, according to the Alzheimer’s Association 2024 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report. This year the cost of caring for people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias is projected to reach $360 billion — a $15 billion increase from a year ago which does not include unpaid care provided by family caregivers and friends.
“The new Facts and Figures report sheds light on the continued pressures/challenges/burdens that many Nevada families are going through as a result of Alzheimer’s and other dementias,” said Elizabeth Edgerly, executive director of the Alzheimer’s Association Northern California and Northern Nevada Chapter. “As the number of individuals living with Alzheimer’s continues to grow, ensuring patients, their caregivers and families have a clear understanding of how to navigate dementia care resources is critical to improving health outcomes.”
The Alzheimer’s Association is hosting a free 6 week education program—Savvy Caregiver Training— for local family caregivers beginning Fri., May 31 at Humboldt General Hospital in the Sarah Winnemucca Conference Room from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The rest of the training will take place on Friday’s, June 7, 14, 21, 28 and July 3 (due to the holiday, the last session of the training will meet on a Wednesday).
The same report found that 54.2 percent of Nevadan caregivers reported that they had at least one chronic condition including stroke, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer—much higher rates than caregivers of people without dementia or non-caregivers. Thirty-one percent of Nevadans reported depression specifically.
“[The Savvy Training] benefits all residents in Nevada, we care about a person’s life and what they need to make it better. We listen to those stories and how we can help them by all taking care of ourselves, especially the caregivers of people with the related diseases as it can take a toll on them. As per the statistics we know how hard it can be,” explained Cristine Perez Marcos Bohen, Family Care Associate for the Alzheimer’s Association in an email.
The training is specifically for family caregivers caring for those living with Alzheimer’s or related dementias, providing clinical-level education and both pre-registration and screening beforehand.
According to Perez Marcos Bohen, the pre-screening helps measure cognitive decline and other important household information before the event to make sure that the training is the most beneficial for attendees. To pre-register visit: tinyurl.com/alznornvsavvy or contact Perez Marcos Bohen at cpmarcos@alz.org or 775-254-0329.
Additionally, financial assistance is available to help pay for
respite care while attending the training if needed. A separate screening interview is required to receive this assistance.
The curriculum includes knowledge of the impact of dementia on both caregivers and the person being caring for, skills to assess the abilities of the person being cared for and develop strategies to manage activities of daily living, set and alter caregiving
goals, develop self-care strategies, identify and engage family and other resources for care-related assistance and support.
The training is an important opportunity for local caregivers to access resources to invest in themselves and those that they are caring for. The special report and other services provided by the Alzheimer’s Association aim to educate and help provide an in-depth look at the latest national and state-level statistics on Alzheimer’s disease prevalence, mortality, caregiving, dementia care workforce and costs of care.
“The big takeaway from this year’s special report is that dementia caregivers want and need help navigating the complex health care system and accessing community-based services,” said Edgerly. “Given the added complexities of dementia care, we hope our report will encourage health systems and practices to think more intentionally about the challenges facing dementia caregivers and formalize dementia care navigation programs to help them.”
Visit alz.org/CRF to explore additional education programs and for more information.