Iceland is not a country with a long history of migration due to its geographical location. Until a few years ago, the population remained relatively isolated and homogeneous. In the past, Iceland has been more characterised by the emigration of citizens and return migration. Strong economic growth and a booming tourism sector have led to a larger number of immigrants coming into the country at the end of the 1990s and beginning of the new millennium¹. In the period 1990 - 2019, the migrant population (born abroad) increased from 9,600 to 52,400, and the proportion of migrants in the total population from 3.8 to 15.5%². Iceland has developed into an immigration country especially for migrants from Poland and some other EU member states like Denmark or Germany.

There are 1,300 people with a migration background aged 65 or older. Of those, approx. 90 are estimated to exhibit some form of dementia. Calculations show the most affected migrant groups presumably originate from Denmark (approx. 30), Germany (approx. 20), the US (approx. 10), Norway (approx. 10), and Great Britain (approx. 10)³.

To improve the care situation of people with dementia, the Icelandic government published a national dementia plan in April 2020. The 13-page document entitled ‘Action Plan for Services for People with Dementia’ addresses, among other issues, prevention, timely diagnosis, post-diagnostic follow-up, support, appropriate care, and research. However, no reference is made to the topic of migration in this dementia plan⁴. The same applies to the ‘Clinical Guideline 2007: Dementia Diagnosis and Treatment’ (scope: 10 pages). There, the focus is on the topics of initial assessment of cognitive abilities, differential diagnosis, non-drug and drug-treatment, and information for patients and relatives⁵.