As dementia rates increase, some say hospitals not ready

As dementia rates increase, some say hospitals not ready

AURORA, Ill. — At her mother’s home in Illinois, Tracy Balhan flips through photos of her dad, Bill Speer. In one picture, he’s smiling in front of a bucket of sweating beers and wearing a blue T-shirt that reads, “Pops. The man. The myth. The legend.” Balhan’s father died last year after struggling with dementia. During one episode late in his life, he became so agitated that he tried to exit a moving car. Balhan recalls her dad — larger than l…