Michigan's State of Health

Many people living with dementia don't feel valued or respected in their communities. But some activists in Michigan are working to change that by creating dementia-friendly communities. That can involve educating the general public on how to communicate better with people living with dementia. It can include creating more and better opportunities for people living with dementia to meaningfull...

One of the most frustrating and scary things about dementia is that we still know breathtakingly little about it. Research has revealed many clues – but not enough definitive answers – about what causes dementia and exactly how it acts upon the brain. And, of course, there's still no cure for any form of dementia.  However, the medical community in Michigan, as in the rest of the U.S., is curr...

Becoming a caregiver or care partner to a person living with dementia is a challenging process. The role is thrust upon some and chosen by others. But in either case, there's a steep learning curve to understanding how best to support a person living with dementia. And caring for a loved one with dementia is often draining on time, finances, and emotional wellbeing. However, numerous Michigand...

Dementia is challenging for everyone, but it takes a particularly heavy toll in communities of color. According to the Alzheimer's Association, older Black Americans are about twice as likely – and older Hispanic Americans about one and a half times as likely – to have dementia as their white counterparts. Numerous leaders in Michigan are working to better understand the differences in how peo...

Starting to recognize the symptoms of dementia in yourself can be scary enough in the first place. But for many people living with dementia, that process is compounded by doctors who seem unwilling or unable to make a diagnosis or offer adequate support when they do. The diagnosis process often takes years, and people living with dementia often feel abandoned to "get their affairs in order&qu...

Nearly 6 million Americans have dementia, and one in three older adults dies with it, but dementia is still wildly misunderstood both by the general public and even the medical community. Here in Michigan, people living with dementia, those who care for them, and leaders in the nonprofit and health care sectors are working to change the conversation about dementia on both a local and national leve...

While Michigan's rural communities may not have faced the same heavy COVID-19 caseload as more densely populated urban areas, they've still struggled with unique challenges. Limited access to hospitals, limited transportation options, and lack of broadband internet have all affected rural Michiganders' ability to get the care they need. And all these challenges have been particularly acute for an...

The isolation, uncertainty, and fear of the COVID-19 pandemic have taken a major toll on behavioral health. A survey conducted last June by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 40% of Americans surveyed reported struggling with mental health or substance use. The prevalence of anxiety symptoms was three times higher than in the same period in 2019, and the prevalence of depres...

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a dramatic effect on food insecurity and food systems. According to an estimate by Northwestern University, the pandemic more than doubled food insecurity in America, affecting nearly a quarter of all U.S. households last year. Here in Michigan, one and a quarter million people have received expanded emergency food assistance benefits during the pandemic. The pandemic...

The COVID-19 pandemic has been especially frightening for older adults. The risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 increases with age for people over 50 years old, and people aged 85 and older are the most likely to to get very sick. COVID-19 has also exacerbated social isolation, which was already elevated among older adults long before the pandemic arrived. However, the pandemic has also...

Black residents have represented 21% of Michigan's COVID-19 deaths, despite making up 14% of the state's overall population. And sadly, disparate health outcomes are nothing new for Michiganders of color. However, COVID has helped to raise awareness of bigger-picture health inequities and the importance of addressing them – not only at the level of large institutions, including governments and hea...

It goes without saying that COVID has taken a terrible toll here in Michigan, as it has around the world. But the crisis has also helped to reveal major, longstanding gaps in Michigan's health care system – and in some cases, it's catalyzed positive action to address those gaps. Over the first six episodes of our podcast, we'll be sitting down with Michigan health leaders to discuss the myriad way...