A Guide to the Diagnosis and Assessment of Alzheimer's Disease

Meeting Organization Guide
Meeting Format

• An educational meeting for PCPs
• A meeting directed at the development of local AD diagnosis guidelines
• A combination of both of the above

Target audience

• Primary care physicians
• AD specialists (psychiatrists, gerontologists and neurologists)

The target audience will vary depending on the approach taken to the meeting. It may be appropriate to invite a number of specialists if a consensus meeting is required for the development of local AD guidelines. Educational meetings may consist purely of PCPs.

Chairperson/speaker(s)

Chairperson/speaker(s) selection should include individuals that:

• Are national/local opinion leaders
• Have a particular interest in the diagnosis of AD in primary care
• Possess sufficient knowledge and experience in the field
• Are a balanced representation of the audience

Using the AD Resource Kit

All three items of the Resource Kit can be utilized during the meeting

• Slide Kit
• Information Booklet
• Reference Card

Slide Kit

The Slide Kit may be used in part or in its entirety, depending on the target audience and the expected outcome of the meeting. Notes accompanying the slides can be used in isolation or as a supplement to the speaker’s own presentation.

Information Booklet

The Information Booklet reflects the content of the Slide Kit and is a useful reference source for the PCP to refer to back in the office.

Reference Card

This card, designed for easy desk or pocket referral, captures the key points in making a diagnosis of AD in the primary care setting. It is intended that the card be used by the participant for quick and convenient referral.

Breakout workshop groups provide an effective way of directly involving everyone present at the meeting. The active debate generated in these sessions will provide useful feedback relating to first-hand experiences in the diagnosis of AD. This will be particularly useful for reaching a consensus for the development of local primary care AD diagnosis and assessment guidelines. If the meeting is intended to be educational only, the inclusion of workshop sessions may not be appropriate.

Prior to the meeting, divide the participants into two or three groups (depending on the size of the meeting). To ensure the full potential of the workshops is met, brief the participants on the topic they will be discussing before they attend the meeting. This will give them some time to think around the subject and hopefully stimulate greater debate during the workshops. It should be made clear that the purpose of the workshops is to generate local guidelines for the diagnosis and assessment of AD.

The diagnostic process may be broken down and individual sections discussed in each breakout group.

The focus areas could be:

• The value of conducting a clinical history and physical examination
• Functional and cognitive assessment in primary care
• Use of neuroimaging and biological markers

It is important to nominate a facilitator for each workshop group to focus discussions and to report back to the main group.

An objective of the workshop should be to evaluate the appropriateness of the international AD diagnosis algorithm for use at a national level, especially those aspects that directly reflect the topic of diagnosis discussed in the workshops.