David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
Early-onset dementia site helps families cope
CBC News
Nov 16, 2011
Canadian teens who have a parent with early-onset dementia now have a new website to help them cope.
The site, called When Dementia is in the House, was the brainchild of Dr. Tiffany Chow, an expert in diagnosing and treating early-onset dementia at Baycrest Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
Children with an affected parent often become "collateral damage to dementia," Chow said, which forces them to grow up quickly.
"Teens caught in this nightmare not only lose the parent struck down with dementia but also time and attention from the well parent consumed with care-giving and financial responsibilities," Chow said in a release.
Chow worked with Hawaii-based writer Katherine Nichols to produce the content for the website. Nichols and her children have firsthand experience with the diagnosis of an early-onset dementia. Nichols' children were 10 and 12 when her former husband was diagnosed.
The new website for families includes separate sections for teenagers and for healthy parents. It is designed to explain the emotional conflicts the diagnosis draws forth as well as what family members can do for the afflicted parent and for themselves.
When Dementia is in the House is a collaboration among Chow, the Canadian Dementia Knowledge Translation Network and Dalhousie University in Halifax. It is supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research/Institute of Aging) and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term.
CBC News
Nov 16, 2011
Canadian teens who have a parent with early-onset dementia now have a new website to help them cope.
The site, called When Dementia is in the House, was the brainchild of Dr. Tiffany Chow, an expert in diagnosing and treating early-onset dementia at Baycrest Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
Children with an affected parent often become "collateral damage to dementia," Chow said, which forces them to grow up quickly.
"Teens caught in this nightmare not only lose the parent struck down with dementia but also time and attention from the well parent consumed with care-giving and financial responsibilities," Chow said in a release.
Chow worked with Hawaii-based writer Katherine Nichols to produce the content for the website. Nichols and her children have firsthand experience with the diagnosis of an early-onset dementia. Nichols' children were 10 and 12 when her former husband was diagnosed.
The new website for families includes separate sections for teenagers and for healthy parents. It is designed to explain the emotional conflicts the diagnosis draws forth as well as what family members can do for the afflicted parent and for themselves.
When Dementia is in the House is a collaboration among Chow, the Canadian Dementia Knowledge Translation Network and Dalhousie University in Halifax. It is supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research/Institute of Aging) and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term.
