On 25 & 26 November 2010, the Belgian Presidency organised a conference entitled “Improving the quality of life of people with dementia: A challenge for European society” in Brussels, Belgium on 25-26 November. The overall aim of the conference was to facilitate exchange between Member States, experts and associations in order to identify promising initiatives and good practices and to transform the results of the conference into conclusions which can be presented by the Belgian Presidency to the Council of Ministers.
The first day of the meeting was a mixture of sharing information and discussion (e.g. about progress with the French Alzheimer Plan, dementia-friendly communities, studies and initiatives about perceptions of dementia and measures to support carers).
On the second day, participants had the opportunity to attend one of three working groups, either on ethical aspects and rights, increasing the quality of life of the person with dementia and the carer or image and public awareness of dementia. The aim of these workshops was to stimulate discussion about these issues and to improve or adapt the recommendations which had been written in advance.
The meeting was attended by a number of AE Board and staff members and Jean Georges was invited to comment on the conference outcomes.