The most comprehensive study ever done on dementia in Saskatchewan yields some surprising results. The research provides new information on the scope of dementia and offers recommendations for action.
According to University of Saskatchewan researcher Professor Debra Morgan, early diagnoses and early intervention can improve outcomes and make dealing with dementia much easier. She believes many people are reluctant to be assessed because of fear and stigma associated with mental illness.
Morgan says the research paper also found that a diagnosis of dementia is often not made until someone ends up in long term care.
“They never had a diagnosis that was recorded in a doctor’s visit or they were never prescribed a medication for their dementia, so there are some issues there that suggest we need to be diagnosing people sooner.”
The research looked at all health regions across the province. Morgan says there were some unusual findings.
“We did see that the north did have a lower incidence and prevalence and we are not sure why that is.”
Morgan says one explanation could be that patients are not coming in to be assessed, or the small medical facilities in remote areas are not adequately equipped to do much more than provide basic care.
The report makes five recommendations including improved support for families, improved access to timely diagnoses, better tracking of dementia and a new updated provincial strategy.
Between 2012 and 2013, there were more than 3,200 new cases of dementia in Saskatchewan representing about 7 in every 1,000 people.
This is in addition to the more than 13,000 people previously diagnosed.