Janissa Altona, research assistant and doctoral candidate at the Institute for Public Health and Nursing Research (IPP) at the University of Bremen, conducts research in the Department of Nursing Science and Health Services Research under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Karin Wolf-Ostermann. Her current research focuses on the design of neighborhoods and their impact on people with dementia.
As part of a research stay at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada, she is working with Dr. Habib Chaudhury on the Dementia-inclusive Streets and Community Access, Participation and Engagement (DemSCAPE) project.
Her research focuses on how urban and neighborhood design influences the lives of people with dementia, particularly in terms of their social health and cognitive functions. The focus is on the role of green and blue spaces (waters) as well as social meeting places that can have a cognitively stimulating effect. The aim is to gain insights into how living environments can be designed to be dementia-friendly in order to promote participation and quality of life.
Janissa Altona is also working on these topics as part of her doctoral studies, which are greatly enriched by the international exchange and interdisciplinary collaboration in the DemSCAPE project. The research stay was made possible by the BremenIDEA funding program of the University of Bremen.
Further information can be found at:
https://www.sfu.ca/gerontology/news-events/students/janissa-altona.html
