Honourable senators, I rise today to speak to the motion tabled yesterday, seconded by Senator Plett. I thank him for his support.

This is an issue that knows no political borders. We all know someone or have a family member that is affected by dementia, Alzheimer’s or some other cognitive impairment. My personal experience includes my own mother and grandmother, whose conditions both rapidly declined. There were always fears that they would leave home and become lost, a common fear amongst many thousands of families and caregivers.

A Silver Alert strategy is a great start. The system mirrors the successful Amber Alert, which is used to locate missing and abducted children. And given the similarity of the systems, they could easily be integrated, making the Silver Alert a cost-effective strategy to help find loved ones.

Here at home, Alberta and Manitoba have led the way in Canada by passing bills implementing the system. Ontario attempted to create a system, but it fell victim to an election call in 2011. Our thanks to a former Liberal MPP, Sophia Aggelonitis, for reaching out to me on this issue. Her hard work and determination are helping so many, including the one thousand signatures she collected for an e-petition.

Many jurisdictions in the United States also have Silver Alert systems. Statistics from cities and states from our southern neighbour show the system has been an effective strategy. Wisconsin’s system, activated in 2014, in its first five months saved the lives of 15 elderly people, including an 80-year-old man found lying injured in a farm field, a familiar fear for families in rural areas. Police cited the system as a direct reason for his rescue.

In Florida, Silver Alert is utilized on a regular basis to locate those missing and is regularly successful. A wide range of people have helped locate folks as described in success stories — police officers, hospital staff, convenience store workers and ordinary citizens all assisted after recognizing someone who was the subject of a Silver Alert.

In Texas, where the Amber Alert was actually created, the Silver Alert system has been active since 2007. In its first year, it was successful in almost all cases.

And in Indiana, the Silver Alert has been successful in 200 of its 235 activations since its inception in 2009, demonstrating clearly that the system is working.

Creating a Silver Alert here in Canada would be an excellent complement to many initiatives currently in place, such as Project Lifesaver, a program giving people with dementia access to tracking bracelets, or the dementia village in Langley, B.C., set to open next year.

The debilitating and devastating nature of dementia and Alzheimer’s sends many families into a scramble while they find a way to deal with what has become their new normal. There is the story of Kathryn, who, at 21, quit her entry-level job and moved home when her mother was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. She described the pace at which the disease took her mother away from her, starting with her mother’s misspelling her birth name and leading to the eventual difficulty in completing simple, everyday tasks. Kathryn could no longer relate to her friends, who were quickly progressing in their careers. Dementia takes a toll on the whole family.

There are more than 700,000 Canadians today living with dementia or Alzheimer’s, and the number may be greater than that because there are so many who aren’t diagnosed. The number of diagnoses is estimated to double in the next 15 years.

The numbers paint a dire picture in our country that sees an aging population and a greater need for care and support. We already have a law directing the government to create a national strategy on dementia and Alzheimer’s, but it is key that Silver Alert be part of the discussion and the solution.

However, as we know, government can move slowly, and we need action sooner rather than later.

People with dementia and Alzheimer’s are prone to wandering away from home or their institution and becoming lost. As I stand here today, there is likely a family member or caregiver desperate to find a loved one.

Dementia, Alzheimer’s and other cognitive impairments have stigmas attached to them, which makes it hard for many to talk about their experiences and seek help. But initiatives are being undertaken, and a national Silver Alert strategy could help Canadians to understand the realities of living with these diseases. Sympathy for those suffering is one thing; empathy for their situation is key to helping us understand that we can help.

The Silver Alert is not exactly like an Amber Alert, where victims are often transported across provincial borders. The nature of the Silver Alert is much more local. So a federal network would help each of the provincial or territorial systems to communicate and collaborate. The federal government should take national leadership to initiate a conversation to create a strategy and to create a network for provincial, territorial, municipal and media partners to work together.

Senators, I hope you will join me in supporting this motion and sending a message to government that the Silver Alert system should be initiated nationwide. Let’s help our families, our caregivers, and, most importantly, our loved ones to feel safe and secure.