The 5th 100-Member Committee to Create Safe and Comfortable Communities for People with Dementia
(March 7, 2009, Tokyo, Japan)

In Japan, where the number of people with dementia is estimated to reach 3.76 million in 2035, 2.2 times of 1.7 million in 2005, dementia is no longer a "somebody else's business" but a big challenge for the whole nation.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, together with organizations concerned with dementia, launched a 10-year program in 2005, the Campaign to Understand Dementia and Build Community Networks, aiming to develop a nationwide public campaign. They suggest that society should not leave the care of people with dementia to medical staff or welfare service providers; it is crucial that wide-ranging residents have a proper understanding of dementia, and can support people with this condition in the community in which they live.
The results have been reported publicly through the development of activities as follows:


Street campaign to call for
understanding dementia

1. Nationwide Caravan to Train One Million Dementia Supporters

Central to the campaign is the Nationwide Caravan to Train One Million Dementia Supporters. Since this program has developed training courses nationwide, about 600,000 dementia supporters were trained as of August 2008. The support base is steadily broadening.

2. Support for the Associations of People with Dementia and their Families

In recent years, it has become more common to provide occasions for people with dementia to interact with one another. The program supports such an effort.

3. Care Management fully Involving Dementia Patients and their Families

This program aims at designing a care management program for people with dementia that fully incorporates the desires and initiatives of the afflicted person and their families, within the framework of the Long-term Care Insurance System.

4. Campaign to Build a Dementia-Friendly Community

This campaign solicits examples of innovative projects which support people with dementia in the communities and also recognizes noteworthy projects.