How ironic that in the week before Dementia Action Week, this year themed around social care reform, the latest Queen’s Speech yet again failed to provide detailed plans to address the issues that have plagued the care system for years.…
Tag: NHS
Delivering a dementia diagnosis
There are many times in a person’s life with dementia that are described as pivotal. Often these are the difficult, crisis occasions that create the negative narrative that is so commonly associated with dementia. But after my recent personal experiences…
The failure of post-diagnosis support
It’s not often that the content of TV programmes stays with me, but the recent BBC ‘Hospital’ series, following the fortunes of patients and staff at Imperial Trust’s hospitals in London, and ‘Granddad, dementia and me’ that I wrote about…
Reframing the reporting about violent older people in hospitals
Recently the BBC ran a story that over 75’s are responsible for 57% of physical assaults on NHS staff in hospitals. These assaults range from biting and pinching through to some of the most serious attacks that are recorded. In…
GP’s and care homes – A relationship under pressure
When I first read that GP’s were proposing to alter their current arrangements for visiting care homes, I wasn’t surprised. Back when my dad was living in care homes, GP’s were already under considerable pressure. I know that one of my dad’s…
Fixing dementia care in hospitals
Standards of hospital care for people with dementia made the news last week, with an investigation by the Alzheimer’s Society showing shocking variations in the quality of care being given, prompting the charity to launch their ‘Fix Dementia Care’ campaign. Given…
Playing the numbers game
I write this blog on the cusp of September which is the 4th World Alzheimer’s Month, a yearly international campaign to raise awareness and challenge stigma. There have been announcements in August around prevalence that have kept dementia in the…
Focus on carers
Today sees the start of the annual Carers Week, an important campaign to help raise the profile and needs of carers in the UK and celebrate the vital contribution they make to society. This year’s theme is ‘Carer Friendly Communities’,…
Dehumanisation in hospitals
I have many personal dislikes to language used in relation to older people or people who are living with dementia, but a particular phrase is the subject of this blog mostly because I think it says a huge amount about…
£55 to diagnose dementia
When the headlines first broke that GP’s in England are to be paid £55 to diagnose dementia, I have to admit I wasn’t surprised. Improving diagnosis rates has been the number one target since the 2009 National Dementia Strategy, and…
The ‘F’ word that no one wants to hear
Most older people are frightened of having them, most relatives of those older people are equally concerned by them, and most health and social care services are under pressure to avoid those in their care having them. Falls really are…
Talking about dementia… with your patient
Welcome to the last of my seven ‘mini’ blogs for UK Dementia Awareness Week 2014. Concerns that a person is developing dementia aren’t just restricted to that individual – they also affect those closest to them, bringing complex relationships into play.…
Can we really ‘Do something better together’?
Given that healthcare was, for a very long time, a closed shop in terms of opportunities for patient input and examples of the NHS listening to the lived experience, we can but applaud initiatives like NHS Change Day and NHS…
