Dementia Friendly Nevada Update
January 21, 2021
Dearest Dementia Friendly Nevada (DFNV) Members and Friends,
As we near the end of the first month of 2021, the DFNV Support Team would like to take a moment to reflect on our collective achievements in 2020, a year that brought challenges none of us anticipated, and yet that adversity prompted a number of truly beautiful developments.
First, after years of wishing it could happen, we finally came together as a statewide network, albeit virtually, and this synergistic gathering is now happening on a monthly basis! We are eagerly awaiting the time when individual DFNV Community Groups can safely meet in-person again, but until then we will continue to benefit from the statewide DFNV gatherings that COVID-19 has catalyzed.
Second, we have created an engaging and impactful online adaptation of the Dementia Friends Information Session that we now offer on the third Wednesday of each month from 12:00 – 1:00 PM, dramatically increasing access to this important content. As of today, we have nearly 1,300 Dementia Friends across the state! Thank you for helping us spread the word about this educational program.
We also nurtured the growth and success of an entirely new program for DFNV, Dementia Conversations, with the first series of Zoom-based, weekly conversations hosted by DFNV members, Chuck McClatchey and Jennifer Carson (Dementia Conversations with Chuck and Jennifer). This supportive and inclusive virtual gathering combines expert advice (from experts of lived experience!) with peer support; people living with dementia, family care partners, and community members gather in virtual community and have genuine conversation about how to live well with dementia. Now Dementia Conversations actually has two weekly offerings, thanks to DFNV members, Nancy Nelson and Kat Hartley!
- Dementia Conversations with Chuck and Jennifer
- Mondays from 10:00 – 11:30 AM
- Dementia Conversations with Nancy and Kat
- Fridays from 1:00 – 2:30 PM
Despite the challenges of 2020, DFNV members continued to advance our shared mission with tremendous creativity and commitment, and the new year brings with it even greater opportunities. We are in initial conversations about developing a mobile website to provide on-demand, essential dementia education to healthcare providers. We are also just beginning our partnership with the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health under the BOLD (Building Our Largest Dementia) Infrastructure grant, under which we are currently working through a comprehensive review of the DFNV website to ensure that it is: 1) truly age- and dementia-friendly and inclusive, 2) in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and 3) translated into Spanish as well. DFNV is also beginning to compile an index of all public messaging materials related to brain health and dementia that exist across our state in an effort to develop a toolbox of resources and identify gaps that DFNV might be able to fill in the future.
None of this would have been possible without the incredible commitment, adaptability, and ingenuity shown by each and every one of you – our esteemed members. Thank you for helping build an initiative that not only achieves inspiring goals but does so with a steadfast commitment to the value of inclusion. Thank you for your part in ensuring that everything we do embodies DFNV’s mobilizing beliefs. Thank you for your unwavering dedication to making Nevada a place where all community members can live and thrive.
May the rest of this new year bring you wellness, positivity, and joy. It has been a privilege to navigate the tumultuous waters of 2020 together, and together we will continue to sail into 2021.
With sincere gratitude,
The Dementia Friendly Nevada Support Team