World Alzheimer’s Day celebrated every year on September 21 st aims to raise awareness on the most common form of dementia, a disease which causes problems with memory, thinking ability and behaviour. It usually starts slowly and gets worse with time.
The I MBBS students of Gulf Medical University organized the event. The importance of this event is to create awareness about Alzheimer's disease as 2 out of every 3 people globally believe there is little or no understanding of dementia in their countries. The stigmatization and misinformation that surrounds dementia remain a global problem that requires global action. The activities included poster exhibition, games, presentation and a visit to an old age home. The games were mainly focused for memory retention and how to detect early signs of this disease. The students of other programs like the dental, pharmacy and biomedical sciences also participated actively, making it an inter-professional activity. “I really appreciate the efforts and hard work of the students who organized the event. They were very eager to get some tips about how to prevent this disease” said Dr. Sovan Bagchi, the supervisor of the event.
“Seeing actual elderly people afflicted with this terrible disease had a great impact on my perception of this disease. It made me understand how senior citizens need our help and care, especially those with late stage Alzheimer’s. Working in a team made me understand how to manage time and people, in order to get work done and progress forward” said Syed Zain Ali, one of the key organizers of the event and a first-year MBBS student.
“World Alzheimer’s day opened my eyes to many of the effects and hardships associated with this disease. I knew that Alzheimer’s had been an issue in the society but never realized the actual impact it had until I researched about the topic for the presentation. It taught us and our colleagues the actual impacts of this disease, its effects and its causes. It also taught us the way we are to treat a person with Alzheimer’s. I am happy that our presentation was able to make an impact on the real outside world and that it sent a message to everyone” said Syed Mohammad Burhanullah Hussaini, also a first-year MBBS student.
