AgingCare.com and ABC News Chief Health and Medical Editor Dr. Richard Besser will host a live Twitter chat devoted to Alzheimer's disease and caregiving on Tuesday Nov. 29, 2011 at 1:00 PM EST. The topic is particularly relevant during November, which is National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month and Family Caregiver Month.
Caregivers are invited to ask questions and share their stories. To join in the discussion, sign into Twitter and search for Dr. Richard Besser. Use the hashtag #abcdrbchat in your questions.
Dr. Richard Besser is chief health and medical editor of ABC News and a frequent contributor to health segments on Good Morning America, World News and Nightline. Before joining ABC News, Dr. Besser was a 13-year veteran with the Center for Disease Control, where he served as director of the Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response.
Alzheimer's disease and dementia is one of the most discussed topics on AgingCare.com's caregiver forum. Thousands of caregivers share their experiences such as: coping with memory loss, behaviors associated with the disease, the struggles of caring for someone with Alzheimer's, getting Power of Attorney and Guardianship for someone with Alzheimer's and finding assisted living and nursing homes that specialize in memory care.
One in eight elderly Americans has Alzheimer's disease (according to the Alzheimer's Association). Nearly 15 million Alzheimer's and dementia caregivers provide 17 billion hours of unpaid care.
To help family caregivers quickly find the information they need, AgingCare.com recently launched The Caregivers' Guide to Alzheimer's, a special section of the website that provides information, articles, tools and resources, and a platform for connecting with other caregivers who understand what they are going through.