The Chicago conference was attended by over 750 delegates from over 65 countries including people with dementia, family care partners, researchers, professional carers, clinicians as well as staff and volunteers of Alzheimer associations.
Delegates and speakers included representatives from such organisations as Women’s Brain Project, NCD Alliance and many others. We kicked off each day with an inspirational introductory presentation from a person living with dementia, to remind delegates why their continued hard work in the field is so important.
The conference boasted a multidisciplinary programme inclusive of sessions on care, psychosocial interventions, dementia friendly communities and a new strand on technology, innovation and entrepreneurship. We searched around the world for the most innovative ideas in dementia research with an emphasis on care and wellbeing. We were delighted to have Britt Monti, IKEA ( come and talk about their new dementia friendly range of products and the development process behind them.
Plenary sessions and exhibition
Plenary sessions covered areas including; international and national policy, scientific progress, care in dementia, psychosocial interventions and technology, innovation and entrepreneurship. These themes were echoed throughout the parallel sessions where we saw many engaging and informative presentations from speakers from around the world.
Our Technology strand saw Maree McCabe, CEO Dementia Australia, outlining new and innovative ways to improve the lives of those living with dementia, while Tetsuyki Maruyama, Dementia Discovery Fund, gave insight from a funding point-of-view. Amalia Funk-Utomo from Alzheimer Indonesia Nederland Foundation explained the benefits of using music therapy as a psychosocial intervention and Amit Dias outlined a multitude of interventions currently being implemented in India.
There were some great exhibits showcased by our sponsors and member associations. Jiminy Wicket gave delegates the opportunity to try their hand a spot of croquet!
Informative workshops included updates on ADI’s programmes such as World Alzheimer’s Month and Dementia Alliance International’s response to the global dementia plan.
