Last week the Alzheimer’s Association released its 2023 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report, a statistical resource for U.S. data related to Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia. The report included a special report, The Patient Journey in an Era of New Treatments, which examines the importance of conversations about memory at the earliest point of concern, as well as a knowledgeable, accessible care team to diagnose, monitor disease progression and treat when appropriate.

Versta Research was commissioned to conduct a nationwide survey of healthcare specialists who diagnose, treat, and manage Alzheimer’s disease in order to document the current specialist physician workforce capacity for Alzheimer’s care in the U.S. The survey included neurologists, geriatricians, emergency medicine specialists, and neuropsychologists.

The survey revealed:

• Emergency medicine specialists see the most patients age 60 or older, as compared to geriatricians, neurologists and neuropsychologists, yet specialists said their neurology and geriatrician colleagues could most effectively diagnose Alzheimer’s disease (79% and 68%, respectively).
• Neurologists and geriatricians are also viewed by other specialists as best able to recommend treatments for Alzheimer’s disease (73% and 71%, respectively). Geriatricians are viewed as the best able to provide ongoing care for people living with Alzheimer’s (79%).

The Alzheimer’s Association noted that new treatment advances have generated excitement and hope — as well as many questions — for people living with early-stage Alzheimer’s and MCI due to Alzheimer’s. However, shortages of geriatricians and neurologists necessary to care for the aging U.S. population — which is expected to grow from 58 million people 65 and older in 2021 to 88 million by 2050 — remains a major challenge. “If specialists receive an influx of referrals to evaluate new patients for cognitive impairment, the specialist shortage is likely to have the most immediate and obvious impact on people at the early phase of Alzheimer’s disease — those who may be eligible for newly approved treatments,” said Nicole Purcell, D.O., M.S., a neurologist and senior director, clinical practice, Alzheimer’s Association.