Burnaby seeks to make city dementia friendly

City staff are working on making Burnaby a more dementia-friendly community.

At its meeting last week, city council passed an action plan that aims to build a community where people living with dementia, their families and caregivers are included, connected and supported.

Symptoms of the progressive disease include memory loss, disorientation of time and place, and difficulties with abstract thinking and problem solving.

There are approximately 2,800 people in Burnaby living with dementia. That number is expected to double in the next two decades, according to a staff report. The report also notes 60 per cent of those residents live at home and want to remain engaged and connected for as long as possible.

The city’s action plan looks to reduce the stigma of dementia and maintain that connectivity to the community.

That translates into: educating staff and the public on the topic, so they know how to respond and provide appropriate support to someone with dementia; implementing social and recreational programming that is inclusive of people with dementia and their caregivers; and creating dementia-friendly features like clear signage and landmarks that help people get around safely.

Coun. Colleen Jordan, whose close relative was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at age 56, applauded the city’s efforts.

“It’s not an old people’s disease. I had another friend who got it when she was 46,” she told the NOW.

At the meeting, Mayor Derek Corrigan shared how his uncle never got to enjoy his retirement because he had dementia.

“It touches each of us in different ways. I doubt there are many people around who haven’t been touched by dementia, Alzheimer’s in one of its forms,” he said.

“This is a hidden disability that people suffer that may not be obvious immediately, but can end up confining someone in their home so that they are, in effect, powerless to be able to enjoy the benefits of the community around them. And often times, because of the difficulties in coping, their caregivers are reluctant to take the dementia patient out and to engage them in the community.”

The mayor added “it’s important that we do what we can as a society.”

“We’re not going to be the perfect solution and we’re not going to be able to solve everything, but again, it’s an area our staff can be aware of and try to help where possible,” he said.

The city received a $20,000 grant from the Union of B.C. Municipalities in December 2015 to develop the action plan. During 2016, city staff met Burnaby seniors, the Alzheimer Society of B.C. and Fraser Health staff as part of a consultation process.