Dementia is a term applied to brain diseases that affect people’s ability to think, as well as their daily functioning. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia among older adults. ACL provides grants that support state and community efforts to increase the availability of dementia-capable services and supports to persons with Alzheimer's and related dementias and their caregivers.
Alzheimer’s Disease Supportive Services Program (ADSSP)
ADSSP grants support state efforts to expand the availability of community-level supportive services to persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders (ADRD) and their caregivers. The program began in 1992 as the Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Grants to States, created by Section 398 of the Public Health Services Act. The ADSSP has evolved over the years, moving from innovative practices and evidence-based grants to its current focus on building dementia capability within state systems. Presently, the ADSSP focuses on the development of systems that ensure access to sustainable, integrated long-term services and supports that are capable of meeting the needs of persons with ADRD and their caregivers to help them remain independent and healthy in the community.
States that benefit from the ADSSP grant program include the following activities in their programs:
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Delivery of supportive services and facilitation of informal support for persons with ADRD and their family caregivers using proven models and innovative practice
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Translation of evidence-based models that have proven beneficial for persons with ADRD and their family caregivers into community-level practice; and
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Advancement of state initiatives toward coordinated systems of home and community-based care – linking public, private, and nonprofit entities that develop and deliver supportive services for individuals with ADRD and their family caregivers
More on ACL/AoA's Alzheimer's and Dementia programs can be found at www.nadrc.acl.gov.
Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative-Specialized Supportive Services (ADI-SSS)
Begun in 2014, the ADI-SSS grant program is designed to fill gaps in dementia-capable long-term services and supports at the community level for persons living with or at high risk of developing ADRD and their caregivers. ADI-SSS program funding is open to a wide variety of both public and private, dementia capable, entities. The program supports quality, person-centered services that help people with ADRD remain independent and safe in their communities. In particular, ADI-SSS program supports the development, improvement, and provision of supportive services to persons living alone with ADRD in communities; person- and family-centered care and training to improve care for and prepare individuals living with moderate to severe impairment and their caregivers for the future; programs and services dedicated to individuals aging with intellectual and developmental disabilities with ADRD or those at high risk of developing ADRD; and behavioral symptom management training and expert consultation to family caregivers.
More on ACL/AoA's Alzheimer’s and Dementia programs can be found at www.nadrc.acl.gov.
National Alzheimer’s and Dementia Resource Center (NADRC)
ACL and the Administration on Aging (AoA) funds the NADRC. The goals of the NADRC include, but are not limited to, the provision of expert technical assistance to ACL/AoA and its grantees, as well as making program information and resources available to individuals and organizations outside the Alzheimer’s grantee community.
The NADRC website contains a broad range of program-related materials to aid grantees, professionals, and formal and informal caregivers. Materials on the NADRC website include issue briefs, webinar recordings, and related PowerPoint presentations, and numerous tools that support service providers and caregivers. The NADRC website is located at www.nadrc.acl.gov.
National Alzheimer’s Call Center
The National Call Center is available to people in 56 states and territories, 24/7, 365 days a year, to provide expert advice, care consultation, information, and referrals at the national and local levels. Trained professional customer service staff and social workers with master’s degrees are available at all times. The Call Center can help with questions about memory problems, how to deal with challenging behaviors, and tips for taking care of someone with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia. When people call the National Alzheimer’s Call Center, they receive information & referrals, which include local Alzheimer’s Association chapters, ADRCs/AAAs, Adult Protective Services, Alzheimer’s Disease Centers, adult day service, assisted living & other service providers. Visit the National Alzheimer’s Call Center website at https://www.alz.org/we_can_help_24_7_helpline.asp