Statement made on 11 March 2010 by Senator Sharon Carstairs
Hon. Sharon Carstairs:
Honourable senators, on Monday, January 4 of this year, the Alzheimer's Society released a new study entitled: Rising Tide: The Impact of Dementia on Canadian Society. The study was conducted by Risk Analytica, a leading firm in risk management.
In brief, this report indicated that within a generation, the numbers of Canadians suffering from Alzheimer's disease or related dementias will increase from 500,000 to 1.1 million. The costs of dementia care will increase from $15 billion to $153 billion, and the number of hours that Canadians will be providing in informal care to their loved ones will increase from 231 million hours per year to 756 million hours per year.
Honourable senators, these are the statistics if, as a society, we choose to do nothing. However, what was important in this report was that they indicated that there were things that we could do. Those are the things that I want to speak about today.
We learned in the report, for example, that increasing physical activity of those over the age of 65 without dementia can significantly reduce their chance of being diagnosed with dementia. That means everyone in this chamber who is over 65 has to immediately increase their exercise program.
Honourable senators, we clearly need exercise, but we also need leadership. Canadians over 65 must be encouraged to be more active. We need a programme under ParticipACTION that is specific to seniors. We need a national advertising program in print, radio and television encouraging seniors to be more active. We need to target the specific activities that seniors can participate in, for example, walking, swimming, aerobics and aquacises, specifically targeted to those over the age of 65 so that there are only positive effects, not deleterious ones. According to this risk study, an increase of 50 per cent more activity among our population over the age of 65 will yield a 30-year reduction in direct health costs of $31 billion.
The second strategy they targeted was a healthy diet and lifestyle, which can delay the onset of dementia by two years. Any delay will result in fewer people living with dementia, less work for their caregivers and significantly reduced pressures placed on health care resources. All these endeavours are positive. The cost savings in raw dollars is estimated to be $219 billion over 30 years and a reduction of 410,000 cases of dementia.
The third strategy was to initiate a skill-building support program for informal caregivers, such as spouses and children, of dementia sufferers. Currently, no training is available and few, if any, supports are available for these informal caregivers. It is estimated that helping caregivers to develop coping skills and to build competency in their caregiving roles will yield a 30-year savings of $63 billion.
The report recommended an intervention that will establish a system navigator or, by another name, a case manager to each newly diagnosed dementia patient to provide both the person with dementia and their informal caregivers with someone who can provide care coordination and support. It is estimated that this intervention can yield a savings value of $114 billion.
This 30-year savings will be $448 billion. Of course, honourable senators, costs are associated with each and every one of these programs but it is estimated today that the cost of doing nothing over that same period of time will be $872 billion. The cost of doing nothing is twice that of doing something. Surely, we must do what we can to provide prevention and better care, in particular if they will result in reduced costs.
It is important to recognize that recently Australia, Norway, the Netherlands, France, Scotland and the United Kingdom have developed specific plans or frameworks for dealing with dementia, but there is no national strategy in Canada. In Canada, 6 of 10 provinces are developing strategies, but we have learned through other national strategies that we have, such as those for diabetes, HIV/AIDS, cancer and 10 others, that when the federal government becomes engaged, a stronger voice and stronger programs develop. Like with other diseases, dementia does not recognize provincial barriers.
Honourable senators, we can and we must do better. A national strategy could and should accelerate investment in dementia research. A national strategy could and should recognize the important role played by informal caregivers. A national strategy could and should recognize the importance of prevention. A national strategy could and should provide for the greater integration of care and use of best practices. A national strategy could and should work toward increasing the number of geriatricians in this country.
Honourable senators, it might come as a surprise to know that in Canada, we have 250 geriatricians but only 150 are in practice. This year, we have only 2 in training from coast to coast to coast. For comparison, we have 1,370 physicians practicing paediatric medicine. Clearly, there is a huge gap in providing the kind of appropriate training and care within this aging society. We need geriatricians to improve diagnostic treatment, support self-management and engage the voluntary sector to make all of this strategy a reality. If honourable senators know someone with dementia today, then they already know how important it is to take action now. If they do not know anyone who suffers from dementia, they can be assured that sadly they soon will know someone with dementia. Two honourable senators during my time in the Senate, one of whom has died and another who is still alive, have suffered from Alzheimer's disease.
Several weeks ago, I attended a forum on Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. A man who sat at the head table was beautifully groomed. In fact, he reminded me of Senator Meighen, in a way, who always looks so sartorially splendid. This gentleman was equally articulate. Therefore, it came as a bit of a shock when he announced that he has Alzheimer's. Honourable senators would not have thought that this man has Alzheimer's. He said that he first became aware that he had difficulty when he found himself in an airport several years ago and had no idea what city he was in or that he was in an airport. This experience is not the same as losing your keys, honourable senators; we all do that. Rather, this gentleman experienced a complete lack of understanding of where he was and what he was doing. He went to his physician who said that perhaps it was because he had been travelling a great deal and was stressed. However, several months later, when he was walking his dog in his own neighbourhood, he realized that he did not know where he was. He went back to his physician and said that there was something seriously wrong. The result was a diagnosis of Alzheimer's.
Honourable senators, if we live to the age of 85 — and I would like to think that everyone here will — 40 per cent of us will have Alzheimer's. I repeat: 40 per cent. I urge each and every honourable senator to take whatever steps they can to influence those who can make such a strategy in this country a reality. I urge honourable senators to do it without delay because the reality of Alzheimer's and related dementia is very much with us.
Some Hon. Senators: Hear, hear!