Promoting Health for Eyes, Ears and Mind: Older Adults

From Division of Neuroscience & Experimental Psychology, Public programmes Team and MICRA

Friday 11 November

The combined impact of dementia, age-related hearing and vision impairment is being investigated by a new multi-million European research consortium led by the University of Manchester.

Seven in ten Europeans over the age of 65 suffer from either sight or hearing problems and one in six Europeans over the age of 80 have dementia. When combined together the cumulative impact of these dual or triple impairments is far greater than the individual conditions. The scale of combined sensory and cognitive problems is substantial but poorly understood.

This afternoon of short talks by leading experts outlined the five year SENSE-Cog programme, the programme aims to investigate the combined impact of sensory and cognitive problems and develop new tools that could improve quality of life and optimise health and social care budgets across Europe.

Speakers:

• Iracema Leroi , Clinical Senior Lecturer - 'Developing a new intervention to support hearing and vision in people with dementia'
• Neil Pendleton, Professor of Medical Gerontology - 'Understanding the inter-relationship of sensory impairments and cognition in Europe'
• Jahanara Miah, SENSE-Cog Project Manager – ‘Challenges and opportunities for patient involvement in dementia studies’
• Chair: Bella Starling, Welcome Trust Engagement Fellow / Director of Public Programmes