HBO Alzheimer's Project: Commentary

Contributed by: Dennis Fortier, President, Medical Care Corporation
________________________________________________


Last night was the first portion of this 4-part documentary (continuing tonight and tomorrow night). It focused on showing what life is like for several Alzheimer's patients and their families at various stages of the disease.

I am fairly close to this disease in the respect that I see real AD patients and their families almost daily. It is an emotionally charged experience when people come face-to-face with such a terrible disease and begin to slowly lose a person (either a loved one or themselves) to a progressive decline of cognitive and functional abilities. Even with my daily exposure to the pain that so many suffer from this disease, I found the show powerfully stirring.

Going forward, this documentary will focus more on the science of the disease and the prospects for better treatment going forward. Because there is such a low level of understanding about Alzheimer's disease, I am encouraging everyone to tune in and watch.

More details are available at the HBO site.