About the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative and the DAC-SP Early Detection Program

The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC) is a global partnership of like-minded organizations that is mobilizing the world against Alzheimer’s disease. Advised by leaders in science, finance, and healthcare, DAC is working with international organizations, governments, and the private sector to accelerate innovation and deliver solutions around the globe.

The DAC Healthcare System Preparedness Project (DAC-SP) is an initiative of the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative which aims to advance how healthcare systems worldwide detect, diagnose, treat, and care for people with or at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Read more about DAC-SP and their framework for addressing Alzheimer’s disease.

Starting in 2021, DAC-SP ran pilot projects in seven flagship healthcare systems across six countries designed to increase early detection of cognitive impairment in primary care settings. The DAC-SP Early Detection Program used innovative screening tools including a digital cognitive assessment (DCA) and, in many of the flagship sites, blood-based biomarker (BBM) testing for Alzheimer’s disease pathology.

The flagship sites included:

  • AdventHealth, Florida, U.S.
  • Brain Health Scotland; Alzheimer Scotland, Scotland
  • Indiana University School of Medicine/Indiana University Health, U.S.
  • INGER/National Institute of Geriatrics, Mexico
  • Kobe University, Japan
  • Municipality of Volta Redonda, Brazil
  • Jamaica Mental Health Advocacy Network, Jamaica

In May 2022, DAC-SP awarded grants to 19 healthcare systems in 12 countries for projects that aimed to increase rates of early detection of cognitive impairment in non-specialist care. Grantees are located throughout the United States, Brunei, Kenya, Germany, Japan, Canada, Cuba, and Armenia. To learn more about the grant recipients, see the Case Studies section.

This blueprint was informed by the experiences of a variety of healthcare systems – the DAC-SP Early Detection Program – who implemented their own early detection programs in different contexts around the world.

Site leads working at a conference table on the blueprint

Photo Caption: Mariana Lopez-Ortega (Mexico Flagship Site Lead) and Ishtar Govia (Jamaica Flagship Site Lead).

Site leads at a wall with post-it notes working on the blueprint

Photo Caption: Naohisa Hatakeyama, Otelo Corrêa dos Santos Filho (Brazil Flagship Site Lead), Dr. Hisatomo Kowa (Japan Flagship Site Lead).