BAI Receives Caregiving Diversity Award
PHOENIX (March 31, 2010) — The Banner Alzheimer’s Institute was recently awarded the Rosalinde Gilbert Innovations in Alzheimer's Disease Caregiving Legacy Award for Diversity.
The BAI Native American Outreach Program was established to increase awareness of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias among the 22 Arizona Native American tribal members and health care providers. The program's goals are to improve diagnosis and treatment and to assist caregivers with the daily challenges in caregiving.
“We are honored to be recognized by the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation," said Jan Dougherty, director of Family and Community Services at BAI.
"This award allows us to further expand and accelerate our efforts to bring awareness and education about dementia to Arizona’s 22 Native American tribes,” Dougherty said.
The program is now in its seventh year of working with Native residents in Arizona. The Native American Program originally began in 2003 under the direction of Marwan Sabbagh, MD, at Banner Sun Health Research Institute and subsequently changed leadership to BAI in 2008.
“This program is bringing practical assistance and strategies to family caregivers who hungry for information and may be isolated because of remote expanse of the reservations or because their loved one has never received a proper diagnosis,” says Filmer Lalio, Native American Community Outreach Coordinator. “The monies help to get the word out to populations in desperate need of help.”
The Native American Outreach Program is part of Family and Community Services at Banner Alzheimer’s Institute. The memory loss care specialists work jointly with the medical team in the Memory Disorders Clinic to customize a specific plan tailored to the precise diverse needs of the patient and family as they change over time.
About Banner Alzheimer’s Institute
The Banner Alzheimer’s Institute is a treatment and research facility dedicated to helping patients with memory and thinking problems. It offers clinical care for patients; provides education, referral and support services for family and caregivers; and conducts leading-edge research in clinical trials, brain imaging and genetics studies. The Institute is devoted to finding effective Alzheimer’s disease-slowing and prevention treatments in the shortest time possible. Banner Alzheimer’s Institute is owned and operated by Phoenix-based Banner Health, a nonprofit organization. For more information go to www.BannerAlz.com.
