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Doc part of national Alzheimer's project Works on Johns Hopkins board By Bill Kettler A Medford physician will help doctors across the United States learn more about Alzheimer's disease. Dr. Patrick Gillette is developing a continuing education program on Alzheimer's for Johns Hopkins University. Gillette was invited to join a nine-member advisory board for the university's department of continuing medical education. Gillette "We want to get (physicians) up to speed on early diagnosis of Alzheimer's," he said. Early diagnosis allows doctors to treat Alzheimer's with drugs that can slow its onset. Gillette, 46, serves mostly older patients. He said diagnostic tests can now confirm Alzheimer's with 90 percent certainty, but some doctors are still reluctant to confirm the disease because it has a devastating emotional effect on patients and their family members. "You can visibly see (patients) slump in their chair" when they're told they have Alzheimer's, he said. "Telling people they have Alzheimer's is like telling someone 15 years ago that they had AIDS." Gillette travels to New York to work with members of the Johns Hopkins advisory board on continuing education. He'll travel to New York again in June to meet with members of the panel. "It's neat to be sitting down with people who are the giants of research," he said. The advisory committee plans to develop a video about Alzheimer's and create a newsletter to share information about treatment. Gillette said Alzheimer's and other kinds of dementia have become more prevalent as people live into their 70s, 80s and 90s. Statistics suggest that one person in 10 over the age of 65 suffers from some form of dementia and about 50 percent of people over the age of 85 suffer from Alzheimer's. That means in Jackson County there are probably at least 2,000 people who have some level of Alzheimer's symptoms. "But we don't have that many diagnosed," he said, "because some doctors look for other reasons (for the symptoms) to avoid (making) the diagnosis." In Southern Oregon, a regional office of the Alzheimer's Association provides support for victims and their families. Encouraging doctors to acknowledge the disease ultimately will help people learn to cope with it, said Regina Stepahin, manager of the Southern Oregon regional office. "Let's get the diagnosis out there," she said. "Let's recognize it as a disease, not a stigma. It's a disease, not a mental illness." Stepahin's office provides information about respite care for people who need a break from caring for Alzheimer's patients at home and other resources. The telephone number is 774-9348. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA