Native Scholar Appointed to Washington State Plan for Dementia Care

Cole Allick, a research assistant professor at Washington State University‘s Institute for Research and Education to Advance Community Health, has been designated to contribute to the Washington State Plan for Dementia Care.

Allick, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and faculty in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, will focus on addressing the dementia care necessities of Native communities within the state’s plan.

There is an estimated population of 125,000 individuals in Washington living with Alzheimer’s or dementia, a number that is expected to escalate over the next twenty years, particularly among those aged 65 and above.

Allick’s involvement aims to bridge the gap in knowledge regarding Alzheimer’s and dementia within Native communities. His work builds on the legacy of Ka’imi Sinclair and the IREACH’s Natives Engaged in Alzheimer’s Research program.

Allick, a graduate of the University of North Dakota, emphasizes the incorporation of Indigenous research methods into Western educational systems to benefit Indigenous communities.