Albania

The main tools reported in Albanian clinical practice are the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA/MoCA-B) and Mini-Cog. The Albanian primary-care guidance recommends using Mini-Cog for initial screening and referring patients with positive results for more detailed assessment with MoCA or MMSE.

A 2024 Albanian study administered a printed Albanian version to older adults in Tirana and Elbasan, while the national elderly-care manual explicitly states that a validated Albanian version of the MMSE exists. For MoCA/MoCA-B and Mini-Cog, Albanian versions have been used in research among older patients in Tirana and Shkodër, but the authors noted that these tools were being used pending formal validation.

CT and MRI are available in Albania, particularly in Tirana. The University Hospital Centre “Mother Teresa” lists both CT and MRI among the diagnostic investigations used by its neurology services, including for patients with dementia and other neurological disorders. The centre also installed a newer MRI system in its Neurosurgery Service, and its neurovascular service confirms access to CT, CT angiography, MRI and MR angiography. PET is much less accessible and its role in Alzheimer’s disease appears limited in routine Albanian practice.

There is no evidence that testing for Alzheimer’s disease genes such as APP, PSEN1 or PSEN2 is routinely available as part of standard Alzheimer’s disease diagnostic services in Albania.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collection and laboratory analysis are available in Albania, including through services associated with Tirana’s major hospitals. QSUT’s Neurology Service lists CSF examination among its diagnostic investigations, while private laboratory services in Tirana advertise CSF testing. There is no evidence that the full Alzheimer’s disease CSF biomarker panel—amyloid-β42 (or Aβ42/Aβ40), total tau and phosphorylated tau—is routinely measured within Albania.

Albania does not have a nationwide network of dedicated memory clinics or specialised Alzheimer’s centres. Neurology Service at the Mother Teresa University Hospital Centre (in Tirana is Albania’s main tertiary referral centre. This suggests that specialist dementia assessment is strongly centralised in Tirana, while people elsewhere are more dependent on regional/general health services and referral to the capital for more specialised assessment.

In Albania, formal long-term care for older adults is scarce and geographically uneven, leaving nearly half of all municipalities without community services. Albania’s 23 residential facilities serve about 705 elderly residents (under 1% of those 65+), while 36 day centers assist roughly 3,000 beneficiaries. Specialised care is severely deficient: despite over 90% of facilities needing dementia care and physiotherapy, only 33% provide dementia care and 25% offer physiotherapy. Infrastructure is similarly strained, with 75% of residential centers needing urgent modernisation and day centers lacking dedicated room for therapy or social programs.

Palliative care in Albania is formally regulated under Law No. 138/2014 on Palliative Care and can be provided through primary healthcare and hospice services, including home-based, inpatient and day care. However, services have historically been developed mainly for cancer and other terminal illnesses, with provision through public facilities and non-governmental providers such as the Mary Potter service in Korçë. There is no clearly documented specialised palliative-care service for Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, so people with advanced dementia are likely to depend on general palliative, primary and family-based care rather than a dedicated dementia pathway.

In Albania, Alzheimer’s treatment is financed primarily through the Compulsory Health Care Insurance Fund (FSDKSH) and the state budget. Insured patients are entitled to medical examinations and treatment in public facilities without charge, while prescription medicines on the national List of Reimbursable Medicines (Lista e Barnave të Rimbursueshme) are reimbursed. There can be copayments for medicines. FSDKSH states that insured patients either pay nothing or make a partial payment of up to 50% of the medicine price, depending on the medicine and beneficiary category.

There is no identified national Alzheimer’s disease caregiver allowance or paid family-caregiving scheme tied specifically to the diagnosis. Albania does, however, have broader disability-related financial support and personal-assistance arrangements. In 2026, the Albanian government announced that approximately 15,000 personal assistants/caregivers of people with disabilities would be brought into the social-insurance system, with the state financing their social and health insurance contributions. This represents tangible state support for caregivers, although it is not specific to Alzheimer’s disease, and eligibility depends on the care recipient qualifying under Albania’s disability framework.

Non-governmental support is available through Alzheimer Albania, whose stated objectives include providing support, assistance and information to families affected by dementia; encouraging caregiver support groups and dementia-care centres; and seeking governmental and non-governmental resources to improve care.

Albanian researchers are developing culturally informed approaches to dementia care by studying ethical decision-making among doctors, nurses and social workers. A 2025 study from the University of Elbasan and University of Tirana identified conflicts involving patient autonomy, family involvement, caregiver burden and limited healthcare resources, highlighting the need for dementia-specific ethical guidelines and multidisciplinary training in Albania.

Albania is also involved in a Southeast European dementia-care network involving clinicians and researchers from Albania and neighbouring countries. The network is developing approaches including caregiver-support platforms, digital education and regionally adapted dementia programmes, specifically in response to gaps in diagnosis, long-term management and specialist services across Southeast Europe.