DementiaLink Central Illinois builds a caregiver-integrated dementia care and navigation system at Central Illinois Agency on Aging (Age Central), an Area Agency on Aging. - DementiaLink Central Illinois places two full-time dementia-capable Community Health Workers at Central Illinois Agency on Aging (Age Central), the Area Agency on Aging serving Fulton, Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell, and Woodford Counties in Illinois. The project runs from September 30, 2026 through September 29, 2029. Many older adults in central Illinois notice changes in memory or thinking but never complete the path from that first concern to a clinical evaluation and ongoing support. Distance, transportation, cost, scheduling, limited local providers, and simply having no one to help navigate the system all interrupt that path. Family caregivers, who often make it possible for someone to keep living at home, frequently go without preparation, training, or relief. Two Community Health Workers will close that gap. One will focus on Peoria and Tazewell Counties, and one will serve Fulton, Marshall, Stark, and Woodford Counties on a recurring rural circuit. Over three years they will screen 800 residents for cognitive concerns using a validated screening tool. Everyone screened will receive a person-centered assessment that also looks at whether they have a caregiver or support network. People who screen positive receive help scheduling and completing a clinical evaluation. People who screen negative are connected to brain health, primary care, and other supportive services. Both groups get help resolving the practical obstacles that stop people from following through, and the workers stay involved until a referral is completed or there is a documented reason it could not be. Each worker will also be a certified care coach delivering Aging Brain Care Community, an evidence-informed dementia care program developed at Indiana University School of Medicine. The project will serve 105 people living with dementia together with their caregivers through this program, providing structured assessment, caregiver education and coaching, behavior management strategies, crisis and respite planning, and long-term follow-up. Caregivers across the region will also have access to an online caregiver education platform. The two positions are built into Age Central's existing caregiver services and information and referral system rather than run as a separate short-term project, so the capacity remains in place after federal funding ends. The workers will connect participants to Older Americans Act caregiver and respite services, veterans programs, and other community supports. Expected results include more completed referrals for cognitive evaluation, greater engagement in dementia and caregiver services, fewer unresolved barriers to care, stronger caregiver preparedness and confidence, and improved quality of life for participants and their caregivers. An independent evaluator at the University of Illinois Chicago will measure these outcomes and report them publicly. Age Central will publish a free implementation guide describing how an Area Agency on Aging serving both rural and urban communities can build this capability, so other organizations in the national aging network can do the same.
