A YOUTH-led dementia charity is aiming to break down the stigma of the health condition within the black community by giving back in a huge way.

Rianna Patterson who is based in Kent, South East England, is the founder of a dementia charity called the Dominica Dementia Foundation.

The foundation aims to help those within the black community in the UK and the Caribbean understand the illness.

Ms Patterson lost her by her grandfather Terry Vidal in Dominica to dementia in 2013 and she says there was not enough support for her on the Caribbean island – so she decided to do something about it.

Speaking to The Voice, she said: “I felt I needed emotional support during that time and I wasn’t able to receive it as much, all I got was maybe school counselling.

“But I felt like I needed a bit more maybe peer-to-peer support, to speak to somebody that is going through the same situation as me.

‘I’m not sure where I could have got that.”

Ms Patterson who is of Dominican heritage, went on to study human behaviour through Psychology and founded the foundation when she was just 18 with a group of her college colleagues.

She said she hopes to use her lived-experience to make a huge difference to the lives of those back in Dominica but also in Britain’s black community.

The 25-year-old says there is lack of awareness in Dominica and other Caribbean islands of syndrome which is associated with an ongoing decline of brain function and says she hopes to help educate people.

Through her foundation – which launched in 2016 – Ms Patterson has been able to provide a vital support network for Dominicans who reside in Dominica and also Dominicans abroad.

She added: “That’s where they are able to talk about their experiences and get support through that community base.

“We also have a Psychologist she comes now and then to bring further emotional support to individuals in the group.”

Ms Patterson said attitudes in the black community towards dementia is changing and “people are becoming more open.”

However, she noted people need to be more comfortable with sharing their stories.

Ms Patterson has directed a powerful new film entitled Dementia: The Island Journey, which is a documentary film on dementia in the Caribbean and includes people from Dominica and Barbados sharing their experiences with the condition.

Ms Patterson said the film – which will be out in June – is also a way to tackle the stigma associated with the illness and also ageism in the media.

The foundation also has a Dominica Friends Programme that is sharing vital information on dementia in communities and helping to break down the stigma associated with it in the Caribbean.

The group shares what dementia is, how you can tackle it and what action you can take.

Ms Patterson told The Voice, she also wants to raise funds for families who are affected by the health condition to help fund treatment for those in the Caribbean who are in need.

She said: “I know that there are families that cannot keep track of the medications, hospital appointments because all of that takes money, so I felt like that was a need to support.”

Ms Patterson said she is liaising with the government of Dominica to ensure “people with dementia are heard in local policy.”

She said she will be working with the Ministry of Health on the National Plan for Dementia in Dominica also.

Ms Patterson said she would encourage those in the black community to support those suspected of having dementia by encouraging them “to get a diagnosis”.

“Once you got a diagnosis then you can take further steps to tailor the approach to treatment,” she added.

She said it is helpful for people to still see “the person and not just the dementia.”

Ms Patterson is currently crowdfunding for the film, so it can have various screenings and is accessible to those who need it most.

She has plans to submit it to film festivals across the Caribbean and then have screenings in care homes in the Caribbean and also in the UK.

The charity boss is based in the UK but said it is important for her to give back to the Caribbean island that gave her and her family so much.

She said: “As someone who is outside and has the resources and the funding opportunities that people in the Caribbean wouldn’t have, you are in a better position to create long-lasting impact.

“If you can, please try and keep those strong links to back home.”

She continued: “It’s very important we still tap into our identity because that is what makes us who we are.

“It’s quite easy to get lost when you’re in the UK and you are miles away from Creole Month and Carnival.

“Doing these projects also benefits the individual as well as the community that they are representing.”

For more information on the Dominica Dementia Foundation or the documentary, visit: www.riannapatterson.com