On Nov. 24, I introduced my bill for a National Dementia Strategy (C-356), thinking of my mom, Leona Gravelle, and the hundreds of thousands of Canadians who have died or suffer from Alzheimer’s or related dementia diseases.

Beginning in her late 60s and early 70s, long before her death at 83 in 2003, mom began struggling with obvious memory loss – first by forgetting things on the stove and appointments.

This deteriorated to forgetting to take medicine, to language loss, changes in mood and behaviour and loss of initiative. We were helpless watching a mild-mannered woman at times turn aggressive and seeing part of her true self slip away.

My ageing father and siblings were overwhelmed at times trying to care for her, even learning to sleep with one eye open to protect her.

I know I am not alone in this experience. Every Canadian knows family and friends who have suffered through the same story.

Over half a million people suffer with Alzheimer’s or related dementia, a figure projected to double to 1.1 million within a generation. This includes 3,000 people right here in Greater Sudbury who rely on more than 21,000 caregivers from their families and in the community.

We have a large seniors’ population in Canada that by 2036 will reach 9.8 million. We can either have a reactive or a proactive plan. Getting the right mix of services and finding strategies to help them age in their homes should be two of our country’s top priorities.

Lorraine Leblanc, executive director of the Sudbury-Manitoulin Alzheimer’s Society, has noted that people with Alzheimer’s can live many years, and their caregivers face great challenges with little resources, often having to quit work to take care of their loved ones.

As the Rising Tide report by the Alzheimer’s Society of Canada documented, the associated health care costs will soar to $153 billion a year from the current $15 billion a year, and the total cumulative costs will skyrocket to $872 billion over the next 30 years.

The good news in the same report is that we can save the health-care system $219 billion over the same period by figuring out how to postpone the onset of dementia by just two years.

Without a plan though, this is a national catastrophe hurtling at us, given the already stretched health-care dollars and the ever-growing millions of hours in informal care provided by tired and overwhelmed families and networks.

Alzheimer’s and related dementia disease are not a part of normal ageing.

My legislation spells out the specifics for a strategy, including establishing national objectives to improve the situation of persons with the disease and decrease its burden on Canadian society.

The strategy would include measures to increase support for research, family caregivers, early diagnosis and prevention, integrated systems of care and the dementia workforce.

January is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month.

You can support the call for a national dementia strategy by signing petitions at my riding office or at the Sudbury-Manitoulin Alzheimer’s office at 960B Notre Dame Avenue.

I encourage you to write the health minister, The Hon. Leona Aglukkag, c/o the House of Commons, Ottawa, ON, K1A, OA6 (postage free), or by email at leona.aglukkaq@parl.gc.ca, copying me at claude.gravelle@parl.gc.ca.

Together, we can work with allies and non-partisan partners to encourage the Government of Canada to take bold action. Together, let’s be a champion for a national dementia strategy.

Claude Gravelle is the MP for Nickel Belt.

Posted by Laurel Myers