On 22 and 23 April, members of the PanEUCare expert group gathered for the kick-off meeting in Bonn (Germany) hosted by the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE). René Thyrian, researcher lead at DZNE and Board member at Alzheimer Europe, welcomed all the participants and paved the way for two days of informative and fruitful discussions. During the meeting, with representatives from 17 different countries, participants focused on sharing their national and regional gaps in health and social care for dementia, as well as on exchanging models of good practice between countries.
PanEUCare expert group members also highlighted challenges in dementia diagnosis and post-diagnostic support services and care in their respective countries, and what the solutions could be to overcome these challenges. Alzheimer Europe Public Involvement Officer Soraya Moradi-Bachiller attended the meeting, where she presented the findings of the European Dementia Monitor 2023 and explained how Public Involvement could help find solutions for the gaps and challenges in social and health care in the context of dementia. PanEuCare is an international EU Joint Programme - Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND) expert group of scientists in the field of dementia care research with a focus on multidirectional knowledge transfer.