Dementia Capable Communities Toolkit
Building an Action Team
The action team is the core group that will drive a focused, crosscommunity effort to prepare the community to be dementia
capable. Pulling together your action team mostly likely will
happen in two phases.
Convening key community leaders and community members is the
first step. This small number of activated participants will pull
together a larger, broad-based community team. The initial core
group may need to conduct awareness building among community
leaders to ensure other key stakeholders are at the table. You’ll
want a broad representative group of community members and
leaders on your action team. In larger communities, subgroups
may need to form to discuss specific topical areas, such as medical
care.
Together the action team will:
Convene: Key community leaders and members need to understand the disease and its implications for
communities. They need to come together to build an action team to:
Assess: Inquire about current strengths and gaps in meeting needs that result from Alzheimer’s disease
and related dementias using a community assessment checklist and/or other tools.
Analyze: Review and understand the all of the data that your team collects. Understand what your
community might focus on and what the community goals are regarding those issues (potential tool may
include a menu or potential goals and paths for pursuing each).
Act Together to plan and engage early champions and others in the community
Prepare a list of potential action team members
Each aspect of the community will need to be represented if the community wants to facilitate real
change. Identify your local opinion leaders and technical experts who can help champion visioning,
assessment, priority setting, and acting together.
Formal stakeholder organizations
Many organizations in your community have a formal stake in ensuring that the community is prepared
to support people with dementia. These may include:

Health care community: adult day programs; ambulance service/emergency medical technician
companies; clinics; home health agencies; hospice programs; mental health clinics; parish nurses;
pharmacies; and community health workers.
Building an Action Team
www.ACTonALZ.org
©2014. This toolkit was made possible by funding from the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
Page 1 of 4
Rev. 01/08/14

Educational institutions: colleges and universities in your community may have health care
programs

Government agencies/departments: health services, social services, city/county inspection offices,
police/sheriff, fire, department of motor vehicle

Nonprofits that serve seniors: Alzheimer’s Association, AARP, Meals on Wheels

Residential settings: single family and congregate residences, assisted living, and skilled nursing
facilities.

Senior service providers: senior centers, Area Agency on Aging, independence at home services
Informal stakeholder organizations
Many organizations in your community have a concern for the community’s health and viability. The
following organizations might be interested in ensuring that the community is prepared to support
people with dementia. These many include:
Business: Business associations, chambers of commerce, all large employers, insurance agents
Charitable or fraternal organizations/community service clubs: Kiwanis, Knights of Columbus,
Lions, Rotary International, Fraternal Order of Eagles, Optimist Club, Elk Club, veteran service
organizations
Diverse and underserved populations: Ethnic, racial, cultural, and linguistic organizations;
organizations serving low income populations
Financial and legal planning
Faith leaders: ministerial association, churches, synagogues, temples, other houses of worship
Faith-based community organizations: Many of these organizations provide support services to
seniors and persons with disabilities, such as Catholic Charities
Wellness: fitness centers, YMCA, YWCA, and others
Informal individual community stakeholders
Some of the most activated team members will be people who have had personal experience with
dementia, including people with dementia and their caregivers. People who have had friends, family, and
neighbors with dementia will have a good understanding of where community supports exist and where
they are lacking or missing altogether. These people might be reached through:

Alzheimer’s Association

Alzheimer’s or dementia support groups

Caregiver support groups

Long term care facilities
Building an Action Team
www.ACTonALZ.org
©2014. This toolkit was made possible by funding from the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
Page 2 of 4
Rev. 01/08/14
Community call to action/call for support
Call to Action
Use a call to action to solicit community member’s interest in being an active participant on your action
team.
Sample call to action
[Community] is coming together to understand how well the community serves people with dementia
and to explore how we can act together to be a dementia capable community.
I invite you to attend an initial meeting to share your ideas and knowledge about what our community
needs to do to support people with dementia.
Preparing [Community] for Dementia Meeting
Date, time
Location
The prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia is rapidly increasing. Recognizing that
[Community] has a growing older population, we need to prepare our systems and communities for the
spiraling needs related to the disease. The rise of Alzheimer’s in Minnesota will bring enormous cost and
burden to individuals with the disease, their families, caregivers, employers, communities, and the state.
The number of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is expected to double for people
ages 75-84 and triple for those over age 85. Younger onset Alzheimer’s, occurring in people under age
65, is also on the rise.
Because of your role as a community leader as [insert role/responsibility/experience], your perspectives
would be invaluable to understanding the needs in our community.
Please join me to prepare [Community] to meet the needs of people with dementia.
Building an Action Team
www.ACTonALZ.org
©2014. This toolkit was made possible by funding from the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
Page 3 of 4
Rev. 01/08/14
Informational meetings
Schedule one or several informational meetings to discuss the impact of dementia on the community,
share a vision of how you wish to enhance community’s dementia capability, and ask for people to be
involved in the effort. Define expectations for participation on the action team (hours per
month/attendance). At the end of the informational meeting, have a sign-up sheet for individual
interested in participating on the action team.
Show the Alzheimer’s Facts and Figures video from the Alzheimer’s Association (1:59 minutes)
Sample sign-up sheet
Interested in Dementia Sign-Up Sheet
Please sign up if you are interested in being part of the Action Team that will to prepare [Community] to
meet the needs of people with dementia.
Name (first and last)
Phone
number
Email
Feel free to note areas of interest
or expertise
Additional meetings

Hold individual meetings with key stakeholders that the core team has identified if they do not
participate in the informational meetings or sign up to participate.

Once you have list of interested stakeholders, schedule regular meetings at a standing time over the
next several months. Use the Initial Team Meeting Discussion Guide to assist you with planning your
first action team meeting.
Building an Action Team
www.ACTonALZ.org
©2014. This toolkit was made possible by funding from the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
Page 4 of 4
Rev. 01/08/14