Elderly cognitive health education slogans

Large-character slogans on outdoor bulletin boards/home entrance foldouts: "Exerting your brain and socializing regularly will slow down cognitive decline by half." "If you forget something, check it early, don't force yourself to do it. Intervene early and you will be less affected." "Checking your cognitive function once a year is more effective than buying health care products indiscriminately."」

Slogans at the community education event: "Learn a finger exercise today, so you won't be confused when shopping for groceries." "Chat with old friends more, and take your grandchild to the park without getting lost." "Learn a new skill, and your brain will be brighter."」

Slogans for informing family members: "Old people who forget things are not "old fools", but a red flag for cognitive health." "Old people in the family often forget things. Check them out as soon as possible without delay." "Chatting with parents more can help them practice their brains.」

I have been working as a cognitive intervention social worker for the elderly in the Yangtze River Delta for almost four years. We came up with these slogans after going through countless pitfalls. At first, we followed the public health education template in the textbook and wrote about "preventing cognitive impairment and improving the quality of life of the elderly" and "paying attention to early screening for Alzheimer's disease". The words were quite large and were posted on the community bulletin board for half a month. The number of people who came to ask could be counted on one hand. One time I met Aunt Zhang who was receiving free eggs, and I casually asked why she didn't read our cognitive education content. She waved her hands and smiled: "I know all the words, but if I put it together and think it is for others to see, it has nothing to do with me. 」

There are actually two different directions for making such propaganda slogans in the academic circles. One is the public health school, which advocates giving direct instructions for action, explaining the benefits thoroughly, and reducing the cost of understanding. Most of the ones we commonly use above belong to this approach.； There is also a school of clinical psychology, which believes that mentioning "recession" and "disease" too much will easily make the elderly resist and be unwilling to participate. They advocate hiding cognitive health content in daily entertainment, such as "sing more red songs and play chess, and you will be in a good mood every day." "Learn to cook a new dish, life will be more enjoyable." This type does not mention the word "cognition", but the intervention actions directed are the same.

I can't say which one is better, it depends on where you use it. Last year we did a screening in a resettlement housing community in Gongshu District, Hangzhou. At first, it said "Beware of Early Signs of Alzheimer's Disease." No one came over for half an hour. Later, it was temporarily changed to "Have you ever forgotten to pay for groceries or forgotten to take your keys when you go out?" Come and take a cognitive test for free, and you can also receive laundry soap.” There was a handwritten poster, and more than 20 people lined up at once. But it was different when we moved to the provincial government-run family home next door. Most elderly people have the habit of reading health science popularization. If you put up a slogan that is too down-to-earth, they will think it is unprofessional. So we changed it to "Early Screening of Cognitive Function to Delay the Progress of Alzheimer's Disease." Many elderly people took the initiative to ask, saying that they had read relevant content in the newspaper before and wanted to take a test.

It doesn’t mean that everything will be fine just by choosing the right slogan. Last time we posted a slogan in a community in Wenzhou that read, “Do more finger exercises, your brain will be more flexible.” The next day, a grandma with rheumatism came to me and said that her fingers hurt and she couldn’t bend them. Could it be that she couldn’t protect her brain? We later quickly added a new version of the slogan for that community, "Listen to more Shaoxing operas and sing more, keep your mind flexible and not forgetful." This was adapted to the hobbies of local elderly people, and the subsequent participation rate was actually higher than that of other communities.

To be honest, there is no standard answer to a missionary slogan. If the old people passing by are willing to stop and take a second look and ask "What is this?", then you have won. According to the year-end statistics we did last year, after changing these slogans to adapt to different scenarios, the average participation rate in community cognitive screening increased from 12% before to 47%. Many elderly people who previously thought that "forgetting things is normal for old age" took the initiative to come for screening. Among them, more than 20 cases of elderly people with mild cognitive impairment have already started intervention, and they are now in good condition.

Oh, by the way, if you are not sure what to choose, why not hold a tea party with a few old people in the community who often sit at the door and chat, buy two kilograms of melon seeds and let them speak for themselves. What they say is 10 times more effective than the professional words we hold back for a long time to write.