Statewide Iowa — A new report from the Alzheimer’s Association paints a dim picture for Iowa and its aging population.
Geriatricians are rare here. Those are primary care doctors who have special training to treat older adults. Lauren Livingston, spokeswoman for the association’s Iowa chapter, say Iowa has a little over two dozen geriatricians and the report says we’ll need well over a hundred by 2050 to meet demand.
There are four gerontology programs in Iowa — at Iowa, Iowa State, UNI and at Des Moines Area Community College. As the prevalence of Alzheimer’s rises in Iowa, so does the need for dementia care workers who can diagnose, treat and care for those living with the disease.
About six-million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, including some 66,000 Iowans. The report calls Iowa a “dementia neurology desert,” where the demand for direct care workers is projected to grow by more than 40-percent in the coming years while their availability will likely fall.
In 2018, Iowa had more than 19-thousand home health and personal care aides. The number of these workers will have to increase 34-percent just by 2028 to meet the growing demand. See the full report, 2022 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures, at the website: alz.org/facts
