For Primary Care Physicians: The Coming Tsunami of Dementia Cases

According to the 2020 Alzheimer's Association Facts and Figures Report, the number of Americans living with Alzheimer's disease will triple by 2050.  How prepared are our primary care physicians to diagnose and manage a deluge of future cases?  A survey of 1,000 primary care physicians found that three quarters said they had received little or no residency training in dementia, even though they regularly cared for patients with dementia.  Half believed that their profession would be unable to meet future demands for care.  So said an article in this week's ALZForum that echoed a report in the Facts and Figures Report.

Digging a little deeper in the survey, the researchers found that thirty-nine percent were uncomfortable making a diagnosis of dementia, and 27 percent were uncomfortable answering questions about dementia.  Thirty-seven percent said most of their training comes from learning on the job while treating dementia patients.

The report drives toward a conclusion that this is inadequate, but what should be done?  Increased federal funding for medical education programs to boost enrollment, forgiving federal and state education loans to inspire more doctors to choose primary care in rural areas, and training nurse practitioners in dementia care were suggested.