It’s an illness that has touched every community and the lives of countless people.
Now the City of Burnaby is hoping to come up with a community plan to deal with the growing issue of dementia.
Last fall, the city applied for a $20,000 grant from the Union of B.C. Municipalities to develop a Dementia-friendly Community Action Plan that was eventually approved.
This week, council approved the process to develop the plan.
According to a staff report, the initiatives from the plan could include:
w Dementia education and training that would assist frontline staff (recreation, library, police and fire department staff) and community members in understanding how to provide appropriate assistance and feel more confident in responding to a person with dementia.
w Social and recreational programming that is inclusive of people with dementia and their caregivers; this type of programming helps those with dementia remain connected to the community.
w Age-friendly improvements to the built environment that are supportive of people with dementia and other cognitive impairments that include ensuring new signage is clear and simple and entrances to new buildings are easy to spot.
The process to develop the plan will include community research on dementia in Burnaby and dementia awareness through workshops.
Coun. Sav Dhaliwal said the plan is a great opportunity for the city to create awareness about the issue, adding he’s also hoping the plan will include advocacy to approach the federal government for a national strategy to provide support for people with the disease.
“This is something across the country people need to create communities that will be accommodating for folks to age at a place where they live,” he said.
Dhaliwal also suggested the funding models for health care may also have to change from a per capita basis to where seniors are living.
Mayor Derek Corrigan also argued dementia is a health issue within the purview of federal and provincial government but added it doesn’t mean the city can’t look at ways to help.
