Interdem is a pan-European network of researchers collaborating in research on and dissemination of Early, Timely and Quality Psychosocial Interventions in Dementia aimed at improving the quality of life of people with dementia and their supporters, across Europe.
About the network
The network’s activities include the Interdem Academy, which promotes career development and capacity building for dementia care researchers, with support from Alzheimer Europe staff. The Academy offers fellowships for PhD students and postdoc researchers, enabling them to spend 3-6 months at another research center with specialized courses in dementia care research.
In 1999, a group of European researchers who had contributed to early dementia literature gathered at the University of Hull, UK, co-funded by the European Commission. This meeting included others from the UK, Spain, and The Netherlands with similar European Commission support.
They pooled findings from pan-European psychosocial research and established Interdem, a network of research-practitioners/clinicians, hosting its first meeting in Zamora, Spain in 2000. This clinical academic network promotes early recognition and psychosocial intervention in dementia research, capacity building, and understanding the experiences of people with dementia and their families across Europe.
Annual and topic-specific research meetings coincided with Alzheimer’s Europe conferences from 2002 onward, facilitating the dissemination of high-quality pan-European research in early recognition and psychosocial intervention. An Interdem Coordinating Board was established in March 2006 to oversee the growing network across European nations. This website originated from the co-funded European Commission project DIADEM, initially hosted by Alzheimer Europe (2004-2007), later transferred to INTRAS, Spain.
Their mission
To develop pan-European research on Early, Timely and Quality Psychosocial Interventions in Dementia.
To actively disseminate this and enhance practice, policy and the quality of life of people with dementia and their supporters, across Europe.
To place people with dementia and their supporters at the centre of European research and practice, by actively involving them in developing these activities.
