World Dementia Council member, Hilary Doxford, was invited to address the 26th Conference of Alzheimer Europe, which took place in Copenhagen from 31st October-2nd November 2016.

As well as explaining how the work of the World Dementia Council is contributing to the wider global effort to combat dementia, Hilary spoke powerfully of her own experiences of living with dementia, advocating for the importance of ensuring the people with dementia are fully involved in all debates.

Chair of the World Dementia Council, Dr Yves Joanette, has welcomed Argentina’s new National Strategic Plan for Brain Health, Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias. Dr Joanette offered his congratulations to colleagues in the Argentinian Ministry of Health, its Agency PAMI, and other leaders in a video message which you can view here:

See WDC Vice Chair, Raj Long’s presentation to the 10th Asian Society Against Dementia (ASAD) International Congress in Hangzhou, China on 21st October 2016, by clicking here.

World Dementia Council Vice Chair Raj Long’s 2015 report Finding a Path for the Cure for Dementia is featured in the newly published Accelerated Access review which was  commissioned by the UK Parliament from the Welcome Foundation.

The review looked at regulatory pathways in the UK with a goal of improving access to new medicines for patients in the UK.

Chair of the World Dementia Council, Dr Yves Joanette, offered an address via video link at the Alzheimer’s Disease International regional conference for Africa, which was held in Nigeria.

In his presentation, Dr Joanette outlined the history and future plans of the World Dementia Council.

Welcoming the communique issued by the G7 Health Ministers’ meeting in Kobe earlier this week, Dr Yves Joanette, Chair of the World Dementia Council, said:

“Dementia is one of the most urgent global health challenges and is not solvable by any one country, organisation or individual alone” says Dr Yves Joanette, Chair of the World Dementia Council. At the first meeting of the independent World Dementia Council (WDC) in Toronto, an ambitious action plan was agreed by members to avert the global burden of dementia becoming unsustainable. The Council was unanimous in its decision to prioritise work in five key areas:

The World Dementia Council has re-formed at a meeting in London, becoming truly globally representative and fully independent in recognition of the urgent need to tackle the global dementia crisis facing us today. The Council has expanded to bring together the broadest range of influential global leaders with expertise and experience in dementia from all sectors, enabling us to challenge and support Governments, industry, NGOs, public sector, academia, the research community and people with dementia worldwide in a concerted effort to address the world’s biggest disease burden.

In March 2015, the initial investors for the Dementia Discovery Fund (DDF) were announced at the World Health Organization Global Dementia Conference, where Health Ministers from over 60 countries attended the Conference to meet leaders from other multinational organizations, NGOs, philanthropic organizations and technical experts.

In 2013, the UK hosted the G8 Dementia Summit and subsequently coordinated global activity around Dementia. One strand of work has led to the publication, in July 2015, of Raj Long’s independent report Finding a path for a cure for Dementia: An independent report into an integrated approach to dementia drug development.