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Currently, there is not enough time or staff in the physician's office to provide education about Alzheimer's disease for newly diagnosed patients and their family members. The Alzheimer's Association Cleveland Area Chapter has implemented a novel approach for individuals to connect to helpful information about Alzheimer's disease and related dementias while at the physician's office. This project is being piloted at two memory assessment clinics of The Cleveland Clinic as a way to give assessment center staff the opportunity to connect families right away with the free support services available at the Association.

Objective Develop and test a stigma awareness and education curriculum targeted to non-medical staff of a local Alzheimer's Association chapter. Methods The curriculum, developed in collaboration with leadership and educational staff from the Cleveland Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, included a definition, types, and domains of stigma; effects of stigma on individuals with dementia and their families; stigma evaluation studies; tips to address the topic of dementia-related stigma with individuals and families. Lastly, an interactive discussion of real-life scenarios facilitated stigma recognition and management. Results Most staff felt the training improved their ability to identify Alzheimer's disease stigma, made them more comfortable talking about stigma, and would change the way they interacted with people and families impacted by Alzheimer's disease. Conclusions This brief, practical educational curriculum has potential to improve awareness of dementia stigma in Alzheimer's Association staff. Research is needed to expand stigma awareness in individuals and groups with varying levels of dementia knowledge.

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