The panel deliberated on the topic ‘Know Alzheimer’s Know Dementia – Post diagnosis support,  highlighting the challenges faced by caregivers and families of person with Dementia and customized solutions by ‘Anvayaa Dementia Care’

Mumbai:  Anvayaa,  India’s first and only IoT and AI tech-based start-up platform providing Companionship and Care to the elders hosted a Fireside chat on World Alzheimer’s Day themed ‘Know Alzheimer’s Know Dementia – Post diagnosis support’.  The panel was attended by Dr. Sanjay R Kumawat, Director, Insight Mind Care Center, Thane, Consultant Psychiatrist, Mr. Sailesh Mishra, Founder, Silver Innings Group, Dr. Manish Chhabria, Consultant Neurology, Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital & Research Centre, and Mr. Prashanth Reddy, Founder, and Managing Director, Anvayaa Kin-Care Pvt Ltd along with other guests and senior citizens. The chat focused on an insightful discussion on challenges faced by caregivers and family in diagnosis and post-diagnosis care for elders with Dementia and the supportive eco-system required for effective management of such elders.

‘Dementia’ is generally considered a part of aging; however, it does not occur naturally. Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common factor causing Dementia. As per the DementiaInIndia   & #LASI Wave-I report, around 5.3 Million Indians were affected by #Dementia in 2020. This number is likely to go up to a staggering 14 Million by the year 2050. Besides the diagnosis, post-diagnosis care, caregiver burnout, unique treatment plan, and unique challenges in taking care of elders with dementia. A personalized treatment plan enabling regular monitoring and tracking of the elderly is necessary because it manifests differently in different people and across the stages of progression. As the condition of the elderly worsens without adequate care and professional support, the whole family is bound to suffer great stress and pain.

Anvayaa’s one-of-a-kind #DementiaCarePlans are designed to reduce caregiver fatigue and the frustration the family goes through. Anvayaa has repeatedly shown that despite the lack of a cure for dementia, there is still a great deal that is possible to help people with dementia.  In comparison with other conditions faced by seniors, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia have very different symptoms and results. The pathogenesis of dementia is a progressive decline in cognitive function (memory, reasoning, decision-making, judgment, etc.), ultimately affecting bodily function. Dementia affects every aspect of a senior’s life, making specialized and personalized care even more essential. Although every case of dementia is unique, here are some things that may happen to a senior with these conditions’ general loss of memory, language, and decision-making abilities, dementia can cause other symptoms. These include changes in mood, such as increased irritability, depression, and anxiety. This requires compassionate and specialized training of caregivers to deal with the elderly. Early detection and diagnosis of Dementia can greatly help in slowing down the rate of deterioration and immensely helps in providing a much better quality of life for our beloved elders and their families.

According to Mr. Prashanth Reddy, Founder and Managing Director of Anvayaa Kin-Care Pvt Ltd, said, “We are happy to associate with Silver Innings, Dr. Sanjay R Kumawat, Clinical Psychiatrist, and Dr. Manish Chhabria, Consultant Neurology to host this fireside chat to spread awareness about Alzheimer’s disease and dementia on the occasion of World Alzheimer’s Day.  Our aim is to identify the critical challenges faced during post-diagnosis care of people with dementia. We have also developed ‘AI Enabled at Home Anvayaa’s Dementia Care Plan’ for compassionate care through a team of specially trained ‘Care Specialists’ who are guided by a team of qualified clinicians to provide customized support to persons with dementia and help the families to prevent burnout. The enlightening session today, will help Anvayaa further improve the services and help elders live a dignified life.  We firmly believe that although Alzheimer’s cannot be reversed, however with strategic interventions along with the trust and support of the elders and their families we can definitely help to delay the progress. We have already been able to positively improve the quality of life of persons with dementia in the last few months and hope to continuously improve our services and help more elders with dementia.”

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Sailesh Mishra, Founder, Silver Innings Group “It is a pleasure to associate with Anvayaa Kin Care and Dr. Sanjay R Kumawat for this necessary dialogue. As the world is progressing Dementia & Alzheimer’s are turning into a new Pandemics , and if India does not wake up then it will be difficult to handle. These diseases not only affect people with Dementia but also is a social, economic, and psychological burden on millions of families and caregivers.

 Government should come out with National Dementia Strategy and take necessary steps to help our elders live a life with dignity.”

Adding to this Dr. Sanjay R Kumawat, Director, Consultant Psychiatrist, Insight Mind Care Center said, “It is high time that we sensitize the community about Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia. These conditions are difficult to identify and diagnose. The post-diagnosis care is even more challenging both for the patient and the family. With the present lifestyle, it is time to be prepared for caring and understanding the patient with dementia. We should also make efforts to avoid the disease by adopting a healthy lifestyle. I would like to thank the entire team of Anvayaa to come forward and organize such an enlightening discussion on Dementia Care.”

Anvayaa has extensively grown and presently serves different services such as companionship, caretakers, tech instruction for elders, visiting temples or malls-assisting the elderly with shopping and other errands through our care managers. With technology-driven initiatives, Anvayaa guarantees senior residents with services including crisis care and social commitment. Over the past 6 years, Anvayaa has handled 350+ medical emergencies and provided immediate logistic support to the elderly to get access to healthcare in time as a result of which Anvayaa was able to save 97% of lives.