Healthy Brain Program

The Healthy Brain Program uses a public health approach to address Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias (ADRD) by leading the Healthy Brain Initiative in South Dakota.

The overarching vision of the initiative is that everyone deserves a life with the healthiest brain possible. To help achieve this vision, the program will focus on the following outcomes:

• Increase community partnerships.
• Increase prevention strategies and integration with other chronic disease efforts.
• Increase policy action and implementation.
• Increase data availability, quality, and utilization, and data-informed decision-making.
• Reduce stigma and bias about cognitive decline.
• Increase knowledge and skills of the current and future workforce.
• Increase public knowledge about brain health, risk factors for dementia, and
  benefits of prevention, early detection, and diagnosis.
• Increase public knowledge and use of services for people living with dementia and their caregivers. 

The SD DOH has established the Healthy Brain Coalition to develop a strategic plan to support a comprehensive and balanced public health approach to ADRD and strengthen our ability to meet ongoing and future needs across South Dakota.

Conceptual Framework for the Healthy Brain Initiative Road Map

The framework of the Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI) Road Map consists of four domains will serve as a guide for DOH to achieve the most action and impact. The framework consists of four domains:

• Strengthen Partnerships and Policies
• Measure, Evaluate, and Utilize Data
• Build a Diverse and Skilled Workforce
• Engage and Educate the Public

Surrounding the domains, shown on the outer circle of the framework, are the areas of practice across the life course that affect the domains: risk reduction of cognitive decline; dementia caregiving; early detection, diagnosis, and management of cognitive impairment; and community-clinical linkages.

Healthy Brain Initiative: State and Local Road Map for Public Health, 2023-2027 

Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI) Road Map for American Indian and Alaska Native Peoples