Media includes all outlets used as a means of mass communication, including print forms, digital technology, and broadcast media. Media can inform, entertain and communicate topics to a larger audience, which is advantageous when sharing news and other new discoveries with the general public, but also has the potential to propagate misconceptions if used improperly. Dementia faces a great deal of social stigma, largely due to lack of public awareness, and often results in differential treatment for affected individuals. Various organizations have stepped up to correct negative stereotypes and reveal the circumstances afflicting millions of individuals worldwide. However, as dementia continues to gain more coverage and representation in the media, one might question how accurately it is portrayed, particularly in films.
The Notebook: The popular 2004 Nick Cassavetes film opens in a nursing home where an elderly man makes his daily visit to read a story to one of the nursing home residents, a female patient with dementia. The story he tells is about two young lovers and how they manage to find their way back to each other despite the hardships they face over the years. To the unsuspecting viewer, The Notebook is an emotional story about the power of love, but, to the dismay of critics, romanticizes aspects of dementia. Dementia is best explained as a gradual loss of cognitive function, including memory, but is especially oversimplified in the film when the patient swings rapidly between episodes of paradoxical lucidity after gentle prompting and complete memory loss. A 2017 study explored a similar possibility by interviewing sixteen couples of their narrative of love, where one partner was the caregiver of the other with Alzheimer’s disease. While couples vary in their responses, from losing their previous relationship entirely to the rekindling of their love, researchers were able to conclude that relationships change with Alzheimer’s disease and other manifestations of dementia. Despite suggestions of The Notebook, relational bonds are tested by a dementia diagnosis in ways that even love alone can not surmount.
Still Alice: This 2014 drama follows the life of 50-year-old Alice, as she is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, and the gradual effect on her family as her disease rapidly progresses over the course of the movie. While dementia is typically diagnosed in older individuals, this film represents a subtype of dementia afflicting individuals younger than 65 years old. Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease makes up less than 1% of all dementia patients and is frequently underdiagnosed, since most research still focuses on older populations. It is still known to progress much faster and produce more devastating effects on families, given the high level of involvement individuals had in the household at their life stage. The author of the novel, Lisa Genova, is a neuroscientist who wrote Still Alice as a way of discussing memory, identity, and bringing up uncomfortable topics in a conversational manner. She admits that she kept the narrative of the book relatively straightforward and could not fully encompass the difficult journey one often takes to reach a diagnosis within the book’s limited pages. She created a discussion guide for people with early-onset Alzheimer’s to share their unique perspectives, and critics further praise the film for its accurate representation in showcasing the extent of disease on a family and on the affected individual themself.
Grey’s Anatomy: Amongst other plot points in the long-running medical drama, titular character Meredith Grey dedicates part of her career to Alzheimer’s research following her mother’s diagnosis and subsequent death. Her journey brings facts about clinical research and dementia screenings to the viewer’s attention, but also reveals the limitations of televised content. While the show attempts to stay true to the medical setting, screenwriters must choose interesting plot points over everyday hospital schedules to keep the audience engaged. Clinical research requires the expertise and input from many different individuals and nearly never advances as quickly as the trial did in Grey’s Anatomy over the span of a single television series season. Despite the hope of viewers (and real-world researchers), there is no preventative cure for Alzheimer’s disease yet, and approved treatments can only slow the progression of the disease. Viewers of the show and other similar medical dramas are recommended to take heed of the information being presented and consider their expectations in terms of their source of information.
These three examples of “dementia in the media” capture dementia from different angles, whether from highlighting the effects of everlasting love, familial bonds, or future medical advancements. Despite the creative liberties taken by authors and filmmakers to appeal to their target audiences, these works still contain elements of truth as the storylines are often based, however loosely, on real people. To effectively discern fact from fiction, members of the Alzheimer’s Society recommend carefully referring to the source of information and consulting with experts in the field. The media as a tool is a neutral entity that has equally as much potential for good as it does for bad. As users, it is paramount to remain aware of the content posted online and to verify sources as needed.
References
[1] What does stigma against dementia look like? | Alzheimer Society of Canada
[2] Demystifying Dementia in Pop Culture – Alzheimer’s San Diego
[3] Love between couples living with Alzheimer’s disease: narratives of spouse care-givers | Ageing & Society
[4] Epidemiology of early-onset dementia: a review of the literature – PMC
[5] Still Alice author Lisa Genova on how to keep our brains healthy as we age : NPR
[6] Still Alice Discussion Guide for Readers living with Early Onset and/or Early Stage Alzheimer’s
[7] On ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ an altruistic act in Alzheimer’s study could wreak havoc – Los Angeles Times
[8] Grey’s Anatomy effect: television portrayal of patients with trauma may cultivate unrealistic patient and family expectations after injury
[9] How to spot dementia misinformation in the media | Alzheimer’s Society
