Through daily contact with many carers of people with dementia, it was noticed that a frequent question was how to talk to the younger members of the family about dementia. In order to meet this need, an experiential workshop was created to inform the grandchildren of those with Alzheimer's disease, and to raise awareness in children aged 6-12. To date, more than 500 children have participated in this experimental workshop, entitled "Who Am I, grandpa?", which won the 2 Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) World Prize during the 29 World Congress in 2014. Through experiential techniques, the children played an active role and shared their feelings and thoughts. The resulting material formed the basis of the present book. Many of the questions and answers of the children were used individually, enriching the narrative with their endless creativity and imagination. The children explain Alzheimer's to other children in their own words, thoughts and images, which is what makes this an original book.
The story is about a group of children who discover that their grandfather has Alzheimer's. Two siblings, Philip and Anna, along with their friends, Kostis and Danae, are the four protagonists. Together they try to find answers to the various strange behaviours their grandfather recently displayed. What has happened and why has he changed? How can Philip and Anna help their grandfather? Will their friends help them? Will the grandfather be able to change as soon as they find out what is behind his strange behaviour? What will the role of technology and their digital friend, Alzhe, be? All four of the friends have a long way to go before they can answer all these questions. “Who am I, grandpa?” is currently being released by Iwrite Publications in Greek and, soon, the English version will be released. It is hoped that this book will be a compass for children, parents and teachers, helping to guide them in increasing their knowledge and awareness of Alzheimer's disease.
The book was written by Alzheimer Hellas psychologists Karagiozi Konstantina, Margaritidou Petrina and Nikolaidou Evdokia. Alzheimer Hellas is based in Thessaloniki and is a part of the Panhellenic Federation of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders, which is a member of Alzheimer Europe.
