​Dementia is a devastating condition, not only for aging individuals but for their families and for society itself. While the prevalence of persons living with dementia has been rapidly increasing, it was not until the Affordable Care Act of 2010 that the phrase, "dementia care training," was even added to federal regulations on long-term care workforce training requirements.

One of the unique challenges to caring for persons living with dementia is moving from a disease-centered approach (focused on treating clinical symptoms) to a "person-centered approach" focused on more humanistic and holistic treatments. This new approach emphasizes developing a relationship with the patient, understanding their needs and concerns, and taking into account their psychological, as well as physical, state.

In this May 21 seminar, Lené Levy-Storms, a Center faculty associate and associate director of the UCLA/Borun Center for Gerontological Research, describes The Dementia Initiative, a national coalition of researchers, practitioners, and policy-makers engaged in efforts to promote a person-centered approach into dementia care. Levy-Storms gives an overview of the trend towards person-centered care and describes in more detail a range of specific person-centered care practices, as well as the scientific and clinical evidence to date of the effectiveness of these practices.