| James Kon |
BRUNEI Darussalam is expected to set up its very own association for dementia this year as part of an effort to be a member of Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI), said Datin Jacqueline Wong, Honorary Secretary of Alzheimer’s Disease Foundation Malaysia (ADFM).
She made these comments at an event held yesterday at Taman Haji Sir Muda Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien to commemorate the World Alzheimer’s Month (WAM).
ADI is a worldwide federation of Alzheimer associations which supports people with dementia and their families. Currently, ADI has some 90 countries as members.
According to ADI’s data and facts, dementia will be the ‘most serious health crisis of the 21st Century’.
With an estimated 2,000 recorded cases of dementia in the country and more cases reported to the authority, a group of undergraduates together with the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS) joined hands to raise public awareness on the health issue.
They set up an action booth to commemorate the WAM as part of Bandarku Ceria’s activities yesterday.
Health Science (Medicine) undergraduates at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) Leong Chie Hui, Lim Wang Tech, Liew Jun Ming and Lee Mei Lu organised the event as part of the module of their course.
Leong said the initiative was to promote healthy ageing as one of the key elements in Vision 2035 and added there is still a lack of awareness on dementia.
Joining the event to raise awareness on the importance of early detection and diagnosis of dementia was Dr Hazri bin Haji Kifle, Deputy Permanent Secretary (Policy) at the MoH, who joined the ‘Remember Me’ walk around Taman Haji Sir Muda Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien.
‘Remember Me’ is the theme for this year’s WAM, and it highlights the importance of early detection and diagnosis of dementia. The WAM is an international campaign held every September to raise awareness and challenge the stigma that surrounds the health issue.
The WAM was launched in 2012 and is celebrated on September 21 each year.
Describing the importance of raising awareness on dementia, Datin Jacqueline Wong said, “Two out of every three people globally have little or no understanding of dementia in their countries. The impact of WAM is growing, but the stigmatisation and misinformation that surround dementia remain a global problem that requires global as well as local action.”
She added, “World Alzheimer’s Month unites opinion leaders, people with dementia, their careers and family, medical professionals, researchers and the media from all around the world.
“Having a globally-coordinated awareness month and day sends a strong message to governments and policymakers, alerting them of the fact that dementia is a serious health issue which will have serious implications on services and health systems around the world as the world’s population grows older,” Jacqueline said.
The Executive Board of World Health Organization (WHO) made a unanimous decision to develop a global dementia action plan, approved and announced during the 70th World Health Assembly (WHA) in May this year.
An Asia-Pacific conference will take place in Jakarta from November 4-5. WHO will be having a side meeting with members of the ADI Asia-Pacific region for a discussion on how best to address their needs.
Dr Teo Shyh Poh, Head of Geriatrics from the Ministry of Health, is expected to attend as the Brunei’s representative to the Jakarta conference.
The post Brunei to set up assn for dementia appeared first on Borneo Bulletin Online.