Oral

As the population of elderly citizens in the U.S. expands, paralleled by an increase in the prevalence of dementia, the role of respite care within the healthcare system will increase in importance and demand. The studies in this sessions address the issues of dementia care from the following perspectives: a reflection of special needs in the aging community in the South Bronx, biomarkers in the visual system for Alzheimer's Disease; planning for Alzheimer's disease in California; emergency and scheduled respite care for caregivers of persons with dementia; the amount of primary care patients with newly-diagnosed dementia receive.

Session Objectives: 1. Design a care delivery model intended to mitigate health disparities and decrease utilization costs. 2. Define the role of respite care in health care settings as the population ages and prevalence of dementia increases. 3. Discuss ways to augment usual primary care to develop Medical Homes for patients with diagnosed dementia.

CE Credits: Medical (CME), Health Education (CHES), Nursing (CNE), Public Health (CPH) , Masters Certified Health Education Specialist (MCHES)