Cleveland Clinic, The American Academy of Physician Associates, PA Foundation, & Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative to Launch Early Detection Toolkit for Alzheimer’s
CONTACT: Katie Ely, elyk@ccf.org, 216-906-5597
Susan Oliver, soliver@DavosAlzheimersCollaborative.org, 703-216-4078
Josh Birch, jbirch@aapa.org, 443-614-5896
CLEVELAND, OH (September 2022) – Cleveland Clinic, the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA), and the PA Foundation are recipients of a grant from the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC), the organization leading a global response to Alzheimer’s disease. The grant will be used to develop an innovative cognitive assessment toolkit that provides a standard protocol and training resources for providers in primary care settings.
The organizations are collaborating to develop a pilot cognitive assessment toolkit for medical providers to increase rates of cognitive screenings of older adults by equipping advanced practice providers (APPs) with the skills needed to perform and interpret the assessments.
The toolkit will address key areas for providers, including cognitive screening tools and protocols, administering screenings, and training and educational resources to interpret results and facilitate conversations with patients. Additionally, the toolkit will include practice-based provider and patient resources. The pilot implementation, led by providers from Cleveland Clinic Community Care, will be followed by outcomes reporting and dissemination of the toolkit to a broader audience of health systems.
“Providing a standardized approach to cognitive screenings for older adults is crucial,” said Nathan Hart, MS, MBA, PA-C., project lead and NP/PA director for Cleveland Clinic Community Care. “Equipping our nurse practitioners and physician assistants with the skills and resources needed to perform these assessments will allow us to increase early detection of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.”
“We are excited to welcome Cleveland Clinic, the AAPA, and the PA Foundation to our global movement to promote early detection and prevention of Alzheimer’s and to help link and scale their successes with our partners around the world,” said George Vradenburg, Founding Chairman of the Board, Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative.
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder and the most common type of dementia. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but early detection is key. Therapeutic interventions for those in mid-life with early Alzheimer’s disease are now viewed as critical to unlocking a potential 40% reduction in late-life Alzheimer’s.
“Alzheimer’s is expected to affect 150 million families worldwide by 2050. Early detection is key to supporting the individuals and families who will face this devastating disease,” said AAPA CEO Lisa M. Gables, CPA. “As patient-centered, team-based healthcare professionals, PAs are committed to doing their part in the fight against Alzheimer’s. AAPA and the PA Foundation are honored to receive this grant from the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative and to be a part of this work that will have a global impact.”
Cleveland Clinic, AAPA and the PA Foundation will join a network of 12 grant projects, all part of the DAC Healthcare System Preparedness project, which aim to advance how healthcare systems worldwide detect, diagnose, treat, and care for people with or at risk for Alzheimer’s.
Cleveland Clinic, AAPA, and the PA Foundation will have an opportunity to extend the project’s impact by sharing best practices through DAC Learning Labs, communities of practice events, and other fora, all designed to share learnings and successes with healthcare systems around the globe.
About Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. U.S. News & World Report consistently names Cleveland Clinic as one of the nation’s best hospitals in its annual “America’s Best Hospitals” survey. Among Cleveland Clinic’s 72,500 employees worldwide are more than 5,050 salaried physicians and researchers, and 17,800 registered nurses and advanced practice providers, representing 140 medical specialties and subspecialties. Cleveland Clinic is a 6,500-bed health system that includes a 173-acre main campus near downtown Cleveland, 22 hospitals, more than 220 outpatient facilities, including locations in northeast Ohio; southeast Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada; Toronto, Canada; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and London, England. In 2021, there were 10.2 million total outpatient visits, 304,000 hospital admissions and observations, and 259,000 surgical cases throughout Cleveland Clinic’s health system. Patients came for treatment from every state and 185 countries. Visit us at clevelandclinic.org. Follow us at twitter.com/ClevelandClinic. News and resources available at newsroom.clevelandclinic.org.
About the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA)
AAPA is the national membership organization for all PAs (physician associates/physician assistants). PAs are licensed clinicians who practice medicine in every specialty and setting. Trusted, rigorously educated and trained healthcare professionals, PAs are dedicated to expanding access to care and transforming health and wellness through patient-centered, team-based medical practice. PA has been named one of the best jobs overall and one of the best healthcare jobs for the fifth year in a row by U.S. News & World Report. The PA profession ranked number three this year in Best STEM jobs. Learn more about the profession at aapa.org and engage through Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.
About the PA Foundation
PA Foundation is a national nonprofit organization that promotes better health and wellness by providing PAs and PA students with philanthropic opportunities and resources. It is the philanthropic arm of the AAPA, representing a profession of more than159,000 PAs across all medical and surgical specialties in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and the uniformed services.
About the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative
Launched at the World Economic Forum’s 2021 meeting on The Davos Agenda, The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative is a multi-stakeholder partnership committed to aligning stakeholders with a new vision for our collective global response against the challenges Alzheimer’s presents to patients, caregivers and healthcare infrastructures. Convened by The World Economic Forum and The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease (CEOi) and fueled by a mission of service to the estimated 150 million families and half a billion people inevitably impacted by this disease by 2050, DAC is a collaborative for the benefit of all people, in all places.
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