According to the World Alzheimer Report 2016, 47 million people on Earth have Alzheimer’s.
It is the most common form of dementia, a fatal disease that destroys brain cells, especially those related to memory.
This disease not only affects millions of patients but also their families, who witness their loved ones’ mental and physical decline.
When 13-year-old Emma Yang’s grandmother developed Alzheimer’s, Emma decided to create a solution to improve her grandma’s and others’ quality of life.
During a New York holiday, Emma observed her grandmother struggling to recall names and ages. This prompted Emma to use her programming skills to develop an app for Alzheimer’s patients.
“Despite the challenges posed by the disease, patients deserve to enjoy life’s precious moments,” said Emma.
Emma consulted 50 Alzheimer’s patients and experts before pursuing her app idea. She secured funding from the Michael Perelstein Memorial Institute in New York.
The app, still in development, features 6 functionalities, including a diary-like feature named ‘today’.
Another feature called ‘I’ provides user profiles, while a gallery showcases family photos with contact details.
‘News’ and ‘updates’ sections keep patients informed about their loved ones’ activities. The app’s facial recognition feature helps users identify relationships in photos.
Watch the video below to hear Emma explain the app’s features:
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Emma aims to raise awareness about her project to reach more Alzheimer’s patients. Share her story if you find this 13-year-old’s app a valuable tool in the fight against this disease.
