Michelle Dyson, left, is urging Andy Burnham to seize the opportunity for reform of dementia care (Image: Alzheimer’s Society/Getty)
Today, the UK welcomes a new Prime Minister. The seventh person in the role in the past decade, he takes office at an important time for people affected by dementia, the greatest health and social care challenge of our time. Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. It devastates lives.
Too many are left without a diagnosis and without the care, support and treatment they need, coping alone with a condition that is confusing and distressing. One million people are living with dementia in the UK and it carries one of the highest economic costs of any health condition — costing the UK economy £42billion a year, including £17.2billion on social care alone.
Yet dementia has never been treated with the priority it deserves. Neither the financial impact nor the personal consequence of dementia will be lost on the new Prime Minister, whose own father currently lives with Alzheimer’s disease — the most common form of dementia.
We know things can change. Cancer care improved because it was treated as a long-term priority. Diagnosis became faster, treatment more consistent and outcomes began to improve – not perfectly, but in ways that have made a real difference to people’s lives. Scientific progress for dementia is accelerating. Blood tests for earlier detection are already with us, and new treatments are being developed to prevent symptoms, not just respond to them.
But scientific progress alone will not change lives. New tests and treatments only deliver their promise if the health and care system is prepared to adopt them. That is why the Modern Service Framework for Dementia and Frailty in England represents such a significant opportunity.
It offers the chance to establish a clear, long-term vision for dementia care, bringing together diagnosis, treatment, care and support within a coherent national approach. If done well, it could reshape how the country responds to dementia for years to come and create a lasting legacy for Andy Burnham and his cabinet.
Improving the experiences of people living with dementia starts with early and accurate diagnosis. At the moment, around a third of people living with dementia do not have a formal diagnosis. It can take years, leaving people drowning in uncertainty and unsure where to turn to for help.
Families affected by dementia need to know where to turn for support (Image: Getty)
When a diagnosis does come, too many are left navigating the aftermath on their own, discharged from the NHS and sent away with nothing more than a leaflet and best wishes.
Access to support depends heavily on where you live, and the system is fragmented, inconsistent and hard to navigate. This is not by accident. This is the consequence of years of political inaction and instability. We would not accept this for cancer or heart disease — we must not accept it for dementia.
The Prime Minister and his new Health and Social Care Secretary have a genuine opportunity to bring about transformational national change. But it will only happen if they choose to make dementia a priority.
That means setting a clear ambition to reduce deaths from dementia, making early and accurate diagnosis the norm rather than the exception, ensuring new treatments reach the people who need them, and building a system that supports people living with dementia and their families rather than leaving them to cope alone.
Momentum must not be lost. For the millions of people across the UK affected by dementia, now is the time for courage. We must not miss this opportunity.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
