This year, 6.5 million people have Alzheimer’s. This number is expected to triple by 2050 unless some type of preventative measure or cure is developed. Care of the baby boomer generation will largely fall on students in college now, according to Alzheimer’s Education specialist, Darren Douglas, who spoke at the “I’m game to end Alzheimer’s” presentation Monday, Oct. 27.
Held in Marty Theatre, the event was part of a campaign in cooperation with the Alzheimer’s Association, set up by a team of public relations majors as part of their senior project.
The group is made up of Jen Jordan, Liz Thompson and Beth Knapinski, who created this event as the second part of their public relations campaign aimed toward 18-30 year-olds.
The presentation featured Douglas as a representative from the Illinois chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association who spoke about the symptoms and effects of Alzheimer’s.
“Alzheimer’s is a thief you cannot see that steals from you your integrity,” Douglas said. “It’s real vicious, a kind of catch-22 disease.”
Douglas stressed that Alzheimer’s is going to affect young people just as much as the elderly, as many students may find themselves taking care of their aging parents. He showed personal testimonies from Alzheimer’s patients, their loved ones and doctors.
“I want [people] to be more aware of what Alzheimer’s really is,” Thompson said. “A lot of people think ‘oh, you’re losing your memory,’ but Alzheimer’s takes over your entire body. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.”
Along the way, there were struggles with creating the campaign on a student budget. Both Jordan and Thompson said the lack of money was a big issue when creating the campaign.
“We definitely learned that [running a PR campaign] is a lot harder than it appears, especially when you don’t have the resources available that you need,” Thompson said.
However, even with the difficulties, they emphasized the need for knowledge and learning about far-reaching diseases like Alzheimer’s.
“Our biggest goal is to raise awareness and education about Alzheimer’s,” Jordan said.
To further Alzheimer’s awareness, students may take part in the group’s “I’m game to end Alzheimer’s” push-up challenge on their Facebook page. The goal is to spread awareness as people collectively complete the 210,000 pushups.
“So many people have misconceptions of [Alzheimer’s],” Thompson said. “I really hope that this increases the awareness, not just in students but in the public as well.”
