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STRiDE

Strengthening responses to dementia in developing countries

Dates: 1 October 2017 - 31 December 2021
Funder: Research Councils UK Global Challenges Research Fund

Project description 

Dementia is not a “developed world” condition: there are already more people with dementia in low and middle-Income countries (LAMICs) than in high-income economies, yet LAMICs are typically less equipped to respond to the high and increasing prevalence. By 2050, there will be 90 million people with dementia in LAMICs.

People with dementia, particularly at more severe stages, require intensive care and support, which is very costly. These costs are mostly borne by unpaid family carers, primarily women, who often have to leave paid work, risking personal impoverishment and societal productivity losses. LAMICs face rapid growth in numbers of people with dementia without well-developed or well-funded health and care systems. Family care availability is decreasing as a result of demographic, societal and economic changes. 

The STRiDE programme will build research capability in using economics, epidemiology and policy analyses to help LAMICs respond to the needs of the growing numbers of people with dementia in an ethical and sustainable way.  

Methods

A range of methods will be used within the STRiDE programme. 

Formal training in research methods, application of those methods to generate new evidence and tools, and training and practice in use of evidence to inform policy will be offered. 

Systematic reviewing and meta-analysis will be used to review evidence on what works in LAMICs and what can be delivered in particular contexts.

The research programme will involve development and evaluation of an intervention to increase dementia awareness and reduce stigma, a qualitative study of costs and other impacts of providing family care to people with dementia in different contexts, generation of quantitative evidence on impacts and costs of dementia on individuals and families, and instruments to collect these data.

The evidence generated will be used to develop, for each country, credible estimates of the costs and impacts of dementia, and use simulation modelling to project future dementia care needs, the health and social services required to meet those needs, their costs, and the impacts of implementing evidence-informed dementia care pathways and better coverage. 

The policy implications of the projections will be assessed and the barriers presented by current organisation and financing systems and the availability of trained workers will be considered.

Local recommendations will be produced to support the implementation of National Dementia Plans. 

Outputs

For outputs visit STRiDE project website.   

Further project information

Principal Investigator: Professor Martin Knapp
CPEC Research team: Adelina Comas-Herrera (Project Manager), Sara Evans-Lacko, Emily Freeman, David McDaid, Huseyin Naci
Collaborators: University of Cape Town, University of Sussex, Alzheimer's Disease International, Dementia Alliance International, along with researchers and Alzheimer's Associations in seven STRiDE countries
Countries: England, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, South Africa

Keywords: dementia, costs, outcomes, carers, people living with dementia