7000 Dementia Programs Overview

Georgia State Seal

Georgia Division of Aging Services
Access to Services Manual

Chapter:

7000 Dementia Programs

Effective Date:

12/15/23

Section Title:

Dementia Programs Overview

Reviewed or Updated in:

MT 2024-01

Section Number:

7000

Previous Update:

N/A

Summary Statement

The Division of Aging Services’ dementia programs and initiatives include the Georgia Memory Net, the Georgia Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias State Plan, Dementia Friends, and the Dementia Care Specialist Program. The goal of these programs and initiatives is to make Georgia more dementia capable.

Basic Considerations

There are thousands of Georgians living with dementia. There are thousands more caregivers of persons living with dementia in the state. As research continues, more is learned about the impact of dementia on families and communities. The legislature and other stakeholders recognize the need for interventions to help meet the needs of persons living with dementia and their families.

To address the challenges mentioned above, Georgia continues to innovate to make our state more dementia capable. We are strategically focusing on:

  • increasing awareness of modifiable risk factors and the importance of early detection and diagnosis,

  • targeting disproportionately impacted communities,

  • collaborating within communities to ensure strong continuums of care, and

  • creating the infrastructure to meet the needs of families impacted by dementia.

With the strong support of the legislature, Georgia has laid a solid foundation for dementia care and support. In 2014, Governor Deal signed the Georgia Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias (GARD) state plan. State funding began in state fiscal year 2018 for the Georgia Alzheimer’s Project (GAP), now known as the Georgia Memory Net (GMN).

In the 2022 legislative session, the General Assembly made a $1.25 million investment to create the Dementia Care Specialist Program to meet the unique needs of people living with dementia.

The efforts listed above are enabling Georgia to:

  • build an effective infrastructure to support caregivers,

  • promote the adoption of person and family centered care with the person living with dementia and their caregivers at the center of care teams, and

  • offer information, education, and care coordination to those impacted by dementia.

References

OCGA 49-6-90, 91, 92 Mobilization for State Response to Alzheimer’s and Dementia Patients