Vatican conference on care of elderly sick with neurodegenerative disorders

November 19, 2013 - Nearly 700 researchers, doctors, professional as well as voluntary church and health workers from 57 countries, have registered themselves for the a 3-day international conference this week in the Vatican on the care of the elderly with neurodegenerative diseases. The Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care held a press conference in the Vatican on Tuesday to present the 28th international conference, Nov. 21 -23, that has as its theme, “The Church at the Service of Sick Elderly People: Care for People with Neurodegenerative Pathologies.” The underlying approach to the various issues of the theme will be one of theological and pastoral perspective and the action of the Catholic Church. Council president, Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski told journalists the choice of the theme was greatly inspired by Pope Francis who has called for an inclusive society where the weakest sections are fully integrated, respected and valued. He pointed out that the high number of abortions and the widespread practice of euthanasia point to a trend of eliminating those economically unproductive and inconvenient. He said that Alzheimer’s disease is the most widespread among old-age dementia diseases, that afflicts some 35 million people. At the current growth rate of some 7.7 million new cases each year, Alzheimer’s could hit more than 65 million people by 2030.