A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.
A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.
Opinion
I congratulate Carl Hayman for being so brave to speak out about his recent diagnosis of dementia, and applaud the journalist who wrote the article about this traumatic and sad journey that led to Carl's diagnosis.
For one so young this is indeed tragic but, sadly, not that unusual. By2030, it is estimated there will be 99,245 of us with dementia in New Zealand. That's up by nearly 30,000 since 2020. These steadily growing figures of people with dementia are fed by such things as trauma to the brain caused by contact sport.
Given the steady increase in New Zealanders being diagnosed with dementia, of which Alzheimers is the most common form, I question the “where to get help” section on the article you published on November 5. While a list of very worthwhile and no doubt helpful agencies were listed, there was no listing for dementia-specific help.
Alzheimers New Zealand has an 0800 number: 0800 004 001. Alternatively, the website https://alzheimers.org.nz will direct you to your local branch or national support.
The local Gisborne phone number for anyone with concerns about dementia is 867 0752.
