How Information Science Research Can Contribute to the Development of Dementia‐Friendly Communities

Abstract

ABSTRACT Dementia is a progressive and incurable disease which impacts both people who have been diagnosed with some type of neurocognitive disorder but also their family members. Since dementia care has lately started to include not only pharmacological treatment and medical care but also a person‐centred and evidence‐based (neuro)rehabilitation in the community, library and information science scholars and professionals have started to investigate how they can contribute to development of dementia‐friendly communities. The paper discusses how findings from an ongoing multi‐phase research have been translated into practice in the city of Osijek, Croatia. Information sciences scholars have collaborated with librarians, civic organizations, neurology and human rights professionals to develop diverse programs in the local community, which aim to raise the quality of life of older citizens, people with dementia and their caregivers through information sharing and raising awareness, supporting their health and wellbeing, and capacity building of librarians.