The Memory Clinic helps in trying to slow down dementia as it is a progressive disease
In Hyderabad, the Memory Clinic at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences' (Nims) has become the go-to place for people suffering from dementia.
One in five people suffer from dementia after turning 80. While the age-related disease had always been taken for granted in the country, memory clinics have come to the fore in recent years to slow down the disease and to provide preventive steps to keep it at bay.
In Hyderabad, the Memory Clinic at Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences’ (Nims) has become the go-to place for people suffering from dementia. Spearheaded by Dr Suvarna Alladi, a team of trained psychologists, therapists and counsellors are helping provide relief and much-needed support to dementia patients.
The inception
The Memory Clinic helps in trying to slow down dementia as it is a progressive disease. For such patients, the services required are different. Dr Alladi says, “We had to create a model that worked. We started this clinic in 2006 when mostly people suffering from advanced dementia would come in for treatment. But now, people in their 50s and 60s want preventive measures. So the profile has completely changed.”
Lending a helping hand
According to a psychologist at the clinic, people come in with complaints of memory loss, epilepsy and head injury. Despite dementia being a common problem, there isn’t any infrastructure available. According to statistics, after you turn 80, one in five will suffer from it.
Dr Subhash Kaul, HOD of Neurology at Nims, says, “Some causes of dementia are due to high blood pressure, diabetes, vitamin deficiency, strokes, etc., that can be treated. “There are other kinds of dementia that are incurable but even then patients’ lives can become easy with special medication. Memory clinic has helped in proper diagnosis, curing some patients and training the incurable ones while supporting them.”
Facing challenges
Sometimes, patients come in with complaints of memory loss and related behavioural changes or problems in daily activities. They think that they have dementia but that is not the case. “When someone is suffering from behavioural issues, they have enough cognition to realise it. That’s not the case with dementia patients so you need to work doubly hard on them. There’s no cure for it. We need to educate their caregivers. Counselling sessions and cognitive rehabilitation are needed to manage their behaviour,” says Dr Alladi.
Staying active
The skilled team at the Memory Clinic plans tailor-made activities. For someone who is impaired, they would ask them to do something as simple as separating grains of dal and rice as long as their brain is stimulated. For isolated ones, the team tells their caregivers to call friends once a week. Physical and social activities are recommended for every patient.
Lack of resources
Apart from the Nims one, there are memory clinics at Gandhi Hospital and Apollo Mediciti. Today, the known number of dementia patients is 40,000 in Hyderabad.
In such a scenario, why aren’t there more clinics? “I think that’s because it requires a lot of hard work, patience and training. Our doctors are extremely busy. Many of these patients need a lot of counselling. There are no quick fixes. Naturally, it doesn’t fit in with the current working style of the doctors for lack of time. Many doctors prefer not to specialise in the field of dementia. You need trained professionals to run memory clinics, which is lacking. Nor is it a cost-effective business model. Only people with passion and humanity will take it up,” says Dr Kaul.
Dr Alladi thinks it is also due to lack of awareness. “People don’t realise that it’s not a mental disorder but a neurological one. Ideally, every hospital should have such a clinic with trained psychologists.”
( Source : dc )
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