CAN TECHNOLOGY HELP DEFUSE THE DEMENTIA TIME BOMB?
Introductory video transcript
KEVIN FONG:
So this picture was taken in the first few minutes after I became a Dad. I remember it really clearly – it’s as much a part of me as he’s a part of me.
And our memories are what make us who we are, our experiences are what we become.
And so what would happen if this was no longer one of my memories, what would happen to me?
NARRATOR:
For millions of people around the world, precious memories – and even parts of their identity – are stripped away by dementia.
And as our population lives longer and longer, more of us than ever before face the harsh realities of this illness.
KEVIN FONG:
But dementia is about more than what you can and can’t remember. As the disease progresses it begins to affect everything that you do.
And eventually even the most trivial tasks become impossible to perform.
NARRATOR:
Yet for many, a live-in carer is neither practical nor affordable. Around a third of all dementia sufferers currently live at home – without this caring presence.
KEVIN FONG:
Dementia is a truly awful disease and at the moment medicine has very little that it can offer.
So perhaps it turns to engineering and technology to offer some hope in the short term and to alleviate the burden on the sufferers of this illness and their carers.