Northside News

What is an ADRC? The place for information and assistance.

By Jennifer Fischer
Aging & Disability Resource Center

The Aging & Disability Resource Center (ADRC) of Dane County is your first stop for accurate, unbiased information on all aspects of life related to aging or living with a disability. The ADRC is a friendly, welcoming place where anyone — individuals, concerned family or friends, professionals working with issues related to aging or disabilities — can go for information tailored to their situation.

The ADRC provides information on a broad range of programs and services. We help people apply for benefits, and we make referrals to other agencies. We serve as an access point for information about long-term care options, including publicly funded programs. We try to help people think through the pros and cons of various options in light of their own strengths, values and preferences.

The ADRC also has benefit specialists serving persons age 18 and over. They help consumers explore benefit options and provide information and assistance regarding private and/or government benefits. Programs include, but are not limited to, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. We also assist with benefit appeals and denials.

In 2014 we fielded almost 24,000 contacts for information and assistance, responded to numerous emails, met with people who came to our office, and visited hundreds of people in their homes. Our goal is to provide resources for older adults and persons with disabilities to enable them to make informed choices, live independent and fulfilling lives, and navigate what is sometimes a complex and confusing human services system.

Talk with us about: adaptive equipment, assisted living/nursing home care, employment programs, financial aid and public benefits, health and wellness, housing options (including senior and low-income housing), in-home care, home maintenance, nutrition programs, medical and prescription drug coverage, caregiver support, support groups, transportation, memory issues, and the choices you have in where to live, what kind of help you need, where to receive that care and help, and how to pay for it.

Our services are free and confidential. There are no income restrictions to meet in order to receive our services. No appointment is necessary. To contact the ADRC, call 240-7400 or email adrc@countyofdane.com. We are located at 2865 N. Sherman Ave. or visit our website at www.daneadrc.org.

By Barbara J. Arnold

In the fall of 2005, I received an email from the Wisconsin Comprehensive Memory Program soliciting volunteers to take part in the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention (WRAP). This was to be a long-term research study aimed at identifying people at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers hoped their research projects would lead to a better understanding of the disease and how to slow its growth or prevent its onset.

I was interested in participating as a volunteer because members of my family are doctors or science researchers, members of my extended family had dementia in their later years, and I had friends who had loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease. I had experience as a study volunteer in a Post-Polio Syndrome Study that ended because of funding cuts. I had enjoyed my participation in that study and learned a lot of helpful things. I especially have used the advice to listen to your body and stop to rest before you reach exhaustion, because you can recover much faster than if you push through to fatigue.

The WRAP study is being conducted by Professor Mark Sager, director of the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Institute, and Assistant Professor Sterling Johnson, Wisconsin Comprehensive Memory Program, University of Wisconsin Medical School and the Department of Veterans Affairs Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital. There were about 500 participants in the memory and cognitive testing. The questionnaires and laboratory testing included medical imaging using a variety of techniques. Lifestyle and health questions have been shared with my family, and I have had follow-up assessments every four years. Some times I have received a stipend for my clinic and hospital visits. I have seen new places in UW-Madison research centers, met very nice and interesting clinicians and technicians, and I even have a picture of my own brain.

Participation in WRAP has grown to more 1,500 and the study is now recognized around the world as one of the premier cutting-edge programs. There are two public updates a year held in several locations around the state. People attending have been able to get up-to-the-minute information on researchers’ findings and get answers to their many questions. Recommendations on diet and exercise have been emphasized to help stave off the onset of the disease and other forms of dementia. I have enjoyed attending public updates, meeting researchers and other study participants, and connecting with friends.

I will continue to be part of WRAP because I like playing a part in finding answers to this devastating disease and being able to share information on the latest outcomes with others.

The Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center is now in special need of participants in two areas. The first is healthy controls. That means if you are age 45‒65 and don’t have dementia in your family, you can participate in research at UW-Madison that helps the side of the family that is impacted. The other is the national Anti-Amyloid Treatment (A4 Study, for short), a new drug study for folks age 65‒85 who are at risk for developing dementia. For further information on how you can help today or in the future, contact Carol Hutchison at 265-0407 or email cshutch@medicine.wisc.edu.

By Danielle Thai
ADAW

The 2012 World Alzheimer’s Report found that negative perceptions regarding dementia may lead to the isolation of people with dementia and their caregivers. However, the report said, “people with dementia and their family members will benefit from continuing to engage in as many activities as they can.” One way organizations around the world have addressed this issue is to offer Memory Cafés.

A Memory Café is an informal gathering place of socialization, support and creative enrichment. Cafés enable persons with memory loss to share fun, laughter and enjoyable activities with family members and friends in a setting free from awkwardness and stigma. The Alzheimer’s & Dementia Alliance of Wisconsin (ADAW) currently facilitates seven Memory Cafés, including a new Northside café offered in conjunction with the North/Eastside Senior Coalition (NESCO). Cultural Diversity Specialist Pam Bracey and Case Manager Kate Shenker, who are the NESCO co-facilitators, work with ADAW staff to offer the Memory Café at the Warner Park Community Recreation Center on the third Monday of each month from 1‒3 pm.

The concept is simple. The goal of the Memory Café is to provide a relaxed environment in which persons with mild cognitive impairment and their family members can enjoy the company of others facing similar challenges and learn, laugh and visit together. One Memory Café participant stated, “My husband and I thought the Memory Café was wonderful. We don’t socialize much anymore and it was great seeing him happy and laughing with others. Opportunities like this make life so much better.”

Activities are chosen, and sometimes led, by participants depending on their interests. Examples include creative projects, games, guest presenters, storytelling and simply sharing among friends. For more information about local Memory Cafes, contact the ADAW at 232-3400.