A central Iowa hospital is debuting the state’s first mobile memory and wellness unit, which aims to expand access to dementia care.
The Mobile Memory and Wellness Clinic will bring on-site memory evaluations and blood testing to neighborhoods and community centers across Polk County. It will also offer educational resources and caregiver support.
Dr. Yogesh Shah, at Broadlawns Medical Center, says half of area residents are living with undiagnosed dementia.
Shah says, “We know now that the Alzheimer’s protein in the brain starts 20 years before the symptoms happen.”
The mobile unit serves as an extension of the Memory Center at Broadlawns in Des Moines. Shah says bringing this care to people gives them a chance to be properly evaluated and helps detect the disease early on.
He says a lot of their patients are from racial or ethnic minorities, and dementia is twice as likely to affect minority groups.
“There is awareness lack, not enough education, not believing in the healthcare system, or not having access to come to the hospital system,” he says.
Shah says the mobile care unit will make critical dementia care more accessible to these populations.
(By Maura Curran, Iowa Public Radio)