National Dementia Strategy PDF Download

"Background: In response to global increases of dementia prevalence, several countries have developed national strategies to address dementia as a public health priority. These strategies aim to improve dementia care, supports, and resources for all citizens, including persons living with dementia, care partners, and communities. Inequities faced by vulnerable populations impact dementia care and health outcomes, however it is unclear whether dementia strategies adequately address these. This environmental scan aims to (1) describe the trends in the different economic, political, and demographic factors that may be associated with the development of national dementia strategies in OECD countries to understand why some countries have or do not have dementia strategies, and (2) describe if and how OECD countries' national dementia strategies consider inequities as a target of concern.Methods: This thesis uses an environmental scan to identify, analyze, and evaluate the existing national dementia strategies of countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).Two databases of grey literature (Alzheimer Europe and Alzheimer's Disease International) were searched for national level dementia strategies, in English or French, for countries that are members of the OECD. After identifying where national dementia strategies have been developed, an analysis of the current health care context was conducted in order to identify trends and associations between dementia strategy implementation and the economic, political, and demographic contexts of the countries in which they currently exist. To do so, we looked at the Gross Domestic Product, percent of health spending, and the percent of population age 65+ of each OECD country. Dementia strategies were analyzed for the presence or absence of seven equity-focused targets of concern. These seven categories (race/ethnicity, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation/gender identity, social class, and rurality) were selected based on two well-known frameworks (The United Nations System Shared Framework for Action, and A Conceptual Framework for Action on the Social Determinants of Health), and then evaluated based on the existence of specific objectives that aim to mitigate inequity in dementia care.Results: As of 2022, 27 out of 38 OECD countries have developed national dementia strategies. Of these, 15 strategies met the inclusion criteria. Twelve strategies were excluded (not at the national level, not in English or French, or not accessible). The included strategies were analyzed based on the following potential healthcare inequities: (1) race/ethnicity, (2) religion, (3) age, (4) disability, (5) sexual orientation/gender identity, (6) social class, and (7) rurality. 13 out of 15 (87.0%) of the national dementia strategies mentioned at least one inequity, while 1 out of 15 (6.7%) mentioned all seven inequities. Of the strategies that did mention inequities, 5 out of 13 (46.2%) had specific objectives in place to mitigate inequities.Conclusion: Although most countries mention inequities in their national dementia strategies, few explore these inequities in depth or have concrete goals in achieving their general objectives. This scan suggests that there is a need to evaluate current national dementia strategies, determine if existing policy is adequately structured to mitigate inequities in healthcare, and if not, modify policy based on the current status of dementia globally"--