Dementia Grants

Programs or projects that increase awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias

• Communidade Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES), St. Paul, Austin & Willmar
• Greater Northwest Emergency Medical Services, Bemidji

CLUES - Understanding dementia through a cultural lens

Dementia does not discriminate - it affects people of all cultures and backgrounds.  Yet people’s backgrounds and beliefs inform their sense of self, how they understand, feel about, and respond to other people and their environment - including diagnoses, health and care organizations and their staff. Providing reliable and culturally-informed information and education to the public—including to persons with dementia and family, friends, and neighbors who are caregiving — will help raise awareness, improve understanding of dementia, and reduce stigma.

Latinos are the third largest demographic group in Minnesota. Yet only a handful of organizations offer education, outreach, and services for Latinos experiencing memory loss and/or their caregivers. Older Latinos are nearly one and a half times as likely as whites to experience Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Latino elders also have less frequent contact with medical systems that could inform them about or identify concerns regarding memory loss, cognitive testing, and caregiving for a family or friend with dementia.

To respond to these issues, CLUES created five short videos with key information tailored specifically for the Minnesota Latino community.

• Dementia Symptoms
  https://youtu.be/H3gfa3QCA4o 
• Debunking Dementia Myths
  https://youtu.be/kZblgCllZco
• Tips for Caregivers and Family Members
  https://youtu.be/EJkcW3qy1Ug 
• Managing the Risk of Dementia
  https://youtu.be/eUfz9MuB1FA 
• Community Resources on Dementia 
  https://youtu.be/H_UtKhf-tGo

Greater Northwest Emergency Medical Services (EMS) - First Responders encounter dementia

As many as 30% of older people who seek emergency medical care are living with some degree of cognitive impairment. People with dementia often have complex needs, posing challenges for paramedics and other First Responders. Many personnel may lack the confidence and skills to assess people with dementia appropriately, and receive little, if any, dementia education.

Anticipating a doubling of the number of older adults in northwest Minnesota in the next decade-plus, Greater Northwest Emergency Medical Services (EMS) worked with Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging and East Central Emergency Medical Service (EMS) to make sure that First Responders in 21 counties got critical education on recognizing and responding to dementia. Using VIRTUAL DEMENTIA TOUR® simulation exercise, nearly 100 First Responders learned how persons with dementia experience the world — and what that means for their Emergency Services work.

Programs or projects that use appropriate screening tools to increase referrals to providers for memory screening

• Faith Community Nurse Network of the Twin Cities, Mahtomedi 
• Volunteers of America-Minnesota, Minneapolis 

Faith Community Nurse Network of the Twin Cities (FCNN) – Normalizing Memory Screening

Memory screens are quick, simple tests that evaluate memory and other thinking skills. Memory screens can help detect memory problems early-on, linking persons to treatments and resources to improve quality of life.

Recognizing both the importance of memory screening and the value of offering them in a trusted, community location, the Faith Community Nurse Network (FCNN) of the Twin Cities sponsored 16 “whole-person wellness” screenings in 2022-23 in housing sites and faith communities that included a memory screening opportunity. A remarkably high 87% of persons taking the wellness screen “opted in” to a memory screen along, with their blood pressure checks, BMI, and O2 tests. 

Project leaders believe that their strategy of “normalizing” memory screens by embedding them into a short wellness exam — and offering them at safe, community sites with trusted health care professionals — was key to the high number willing to take a memory screen.  Additional resources, including referrals to for those wanting more extensive cognitive testing, were available.

As part of its grant project, FCNN also hosted memory screening training referrals for its network of 400 nurse educators who collectively reach more than 200 faith communities.

Volunteers of America-Minnesota – Using culturally-appropriate screening tools

Screening for early identification of memory loss and available community service supports can help those with diagnosed dementia to remain in their homes and local communities for as long as possible.

Projects funded in this category use or develop culturally appropriate screening tools—tools that recognize and value the language, culture, and traditions of those being screened—to assess memory loss.

Volunteers of America-Minnesota’s Culturally Responsive Caregiver Support and Dementia Services program used funding to develop and offer memory screening tools tailored to African American, East African, and Hmong individuals with possible memory loss.  With its neighborhood-based approach – and its very own mobile health and screening clinic—Volunteers of America screened more than 400 community members in the past year, connecting them and their caregivers to community supports and resources.

Projects or programs in this category are generally led by healthcare organizations or by specially trained or licensed professionals who are experts in Alzheimer’s Disease and other related dementias

• Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network, St. Cloud

Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network - Increasing Physician Dementia IQ

Eighty-two percent of older adults think it’s important to have their memory checked out regularly. Ninety percent of physicians surveyed in 2020 by the Alzheimer’s Association agree.  Yet only half of physicians responding think the primary care medical sector is prepared to diagnose and treat dementia. 

The physician-led Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network (D-CAN) in St. Cloud is working to boost the knowledge and confidence of front-line primary care physicians in doing memory screening and connecting patients with more complex testing, if needed. Their strategies include offering dementia education aimed at area primary care physicians, launching a physician-to-physician social media campaign about importance of dementia screening, and developing primary practice “best practices” around screening and holistic dementia care.

Projects or programs that connect family, friends and neighbors who are caregivers for individuals with dementia to services, education and resources

• Steele County Historical Society and Museum, Owatonna
• Koochiching Aging Options, International Falls

Steele County Historical Society - Combatting Social Isolation

Individuals with mild dementia symptoms often may continue to work, drive, and participate in their favorite activities, with occasional help from family members and friends. However, as the disease progresses, a person with dementia may stop taking part in activities or conversation as much as they used to.  They may find too much stimulation difficult. It is not usual for those with dementia to become more socially isolated, along with their primary caregiver.

Memory Cafes, developed first in Europe and now widespread in the USA, are designed as safe spaces where persons with dementia and their caregivers can connect with others on a similar path.  Using Museum collections to spark conversation and interaction, the Steele County Historical Society launched History Partners Memory Café in 2021. It continues today, thanks to support from local community members, foundations, and businesses.

Koochiching Aging Options - Supporting Caregiving on “Minnesota’s Frontier”

When you hear the term “frontier,” you probably think about someplace long ago and far away. Yet Minnesota has seven counties that today are counted as “frontier areas” with fewer than seven people per square mile. 

With four persons per square mile, Koochiching County is such a place.  For almost the past quarter-century, Koochiching Aging Options (KAO) has been the go-to resource for older persons and family and friends who provide care to them in Koochiching County.

Multiple grant awards have helped KAO fill a gap in dementia-specific needs. One of Koochiching County’s most critical and growing need is one-on-one support from KAO’s certified caregiver consultant. She can help a stressed caregiver find resources, learn coping skills, and find time for self-care. KAO’s caregiving consultant can also help persons with dementia and their care partners connect, learn about Alzheimer’s and other dementias, create a support plan, and connect with community resources.  In just the first quarter of KAO’s 2024 grant, its caregiver consultant has connected with more than 70 persons seeking support.

• Legislative Report: Dementia Grants Annual Progress (PDF) 
• 2019 Legislative Report: Alzheimer's Disease Working Group (PDF)