Commun ty Matters Wichita Presbyterian Manor
November 2018
November is Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month In 1983, President Ronald Reagan designated November as Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, at that time there were less than two million people with the disease. Today, the number of people with the disease has climbed to more than 5.7 million, with that number likely to triple by 2050. One in 10 people age 65 and older (10 percent) has Alzheimer’s dementia. And although those ages 65 and older are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, there are thousands of others younger than 65 who have early-onset Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s, the sixth leading cause of death in the USA, is climbing steadily in the rankings. It is the leading cause of dementia and accounts for about 65-percent of all dementia worldwide. According to Alzheimer’s Society, almost 40 percent of people over the age of 65 experience some form of memory loss. But, memory loss is not part of the normal aging process and regardless of the cause of memory loss, timely medical ALZHEIMERS, continued on page 3
Mary LeRoy is no stranger to caregiving after caring for her adult daughter for many years. When her husband, Elmer, was diagnosed with dementia, she found support with the Daybreak Adult Day Services at Wichita Presbyterian Manor.
Caring for caregivers Each year, approximately 39.8 million individuals provide care to an adult with a disability or illness in the United States. Among those, 15.7 million are individuals caring for a family member who has Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia. It’s a full-time job with no vacations or weekends. Between cooking, bathing, dressing and providing medical care, caregivers are “on the job” an average of nine hours a day. Luckily, programs like Wichita Presbyterian Manor’s Cypress Memory Care Daybreak Adult Day Service, provide caregivers with hands-on support and a chance to take a well-deserved break. For Mary LeRoy, the program was a godsend. Having already been a caregiver for her adult daughter, Mary’s responsibilities increased in 2012 when her husband, Elmer, was diagnosed with dementia. At first, she tried taking it on alone, but eventually she turned to Wichita Presbyterian Manor (WPM). CAREGIVERS, continued on page 2