| The Center for Outreach in Alzheimer’s, Aging and Community Health (COAACH) will cut the ribbon for its new facility at 4 p.m., Nov. 21 at 2105 Yanceyville St.
Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia in older populations, affecting more than 5 million, Americans including 150,000 North Carolinians. The center was made possible by a $1 million grant from Merck. It is working to promote the science and application of healthy aging through research, education, capacity building and empowerment.
N.C. A&T’s biology department in the College of Arts and Sciences is the research site for the first and the largest study of Alzheimer’s disease among African Americans. Dr. Goldie Byrd, Professor of Biology and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, is the principal investigator on the project.
The center provides services and learning opportunities like caregiver support groups, workshops and the annual Caregivers Education Conference, held earlier this month, so more people living with Alzheimer’s may live their lives with quality, dignity and independence.
The center has three major functions:
- Education and Awareness: To improve health and wellness literacy and increase awareness of chronic diseases such as Alzheimer’s for affected individuals and caregivers.
- Family and Community Empowerment: To provide community outreach services that focus on educating cognitively impaired elders and their caregivers and promote advocacy for issues that support healthy aging.
- Research and Development: To create multi-disciplinary knowledge and scholarly expertise in aging, Alzheimer’s and community health, and to train the next generation of scientists and health care providers in aging-related research through formal academic programs.
For additional information about the center, its programming and events, visit the website at www.coaachhealth.org.
|
