Montefiore Health System has announced the New York State Department of Health has continued its designation as a Center of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease (CEAD) with a $2.3 million grant over five years to provide screening and care planning for individuals with memory impairments and their caregivers in the Hudson Valley.
The Montefiore CEAD is one of 10 in the state and promotes early diagnosis and assessment by a team of neurologists, geriatricians, neuropsychologists and social workers to determine if an individual’s memory issues are caused by Alzheimer’s disease, another form of dementia, or are the result of an unrelated medical issue. The CEAD is based at Montefiore’s Center for the Aging Brain in Yonkers, which partners with multi-specialty practices in the Hudson Valley, resulting in more than 1,200 new diagnostic assessments in the region (plus another 1,000 in the Bronx) in the past year alone.
“Early and accurate diagnosis offers benefits to both patients and caregivers, including education and advance financial, legal, medical and caregiving planning; access to new treatment modalities and to community-based support services,” said Dr. Jessica Zwerling, a neurologist and director of the Montefiore CEAD who is also a professor in the Saul R. Korey Department of Neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. “The funds from NYS Department of Health will help us expand specialized dementia training to more clinicians, psychologists, residents, nurses and social workers throughout the region.”
Photo: Dr. Jessica Zwerling
