Dementia ‘falling by the wayside’ as 10-year strategy stalls again
THE Government has refused to give a date for the release of its 10-year dementia plan despite being asked 25 times by an Alzheimer’s charity.
The Alzheimer’s Society said it had continually questioned the Health Secretary but been told the strategy would be published “in due course”.
Today, the charity will deliver an open letter to Rishi Sunak calling for him to urgently honour the Government’s dementia commitments, which promised widespread social care reform, and double the spending on research.
Kate Lee, the chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “We’ve welcomed previous commitments from the Government but we’re concerned they’re falling by the wayside.
“The recommitment to the National Dementia Mission – to double dementia research spend – was a promising step, but we’re yet to see tangible action, while progress on the 10-year plan on dementia has stalled and social care reform has been scrapped.
“When asked for an update, the Government has told us ‘in due course’ 25 times, which isn’t good enough – sadly dementia doesn’t wait for ‘due course’.”
More than 36,000 members of the public signed an Alzheimer’s Society’s letter, including Dame Arlene Phillips, the Strictly Come Dancing judge, and Vicky Mcclure, the Line of Duty star and Our Dementia Choir co-founder.
Mcclure, an Alzheimer’s Society ambassador, said: “People living with dementia and their carers must get the basic care and support they need to live fulfilled lives – things like breaks for carers, music therapy and support groups.
“We’ve heard lots of ambitious words from Government about dementia but words need to become action.
“Rishi Sunak must make dementia a priority.”
There are currently 900,000 people living with dementia in Britain with the numbers set to grow.
Diagnosis rates are still sitting below pre-pandemic levels, and national figures show people are waiting up to two years in some areas for a diagnosis, thereby missing out on vital treatment and support.
Research from the Alzheimer’s Society also shows that three in every five people affected by dementia have struggled to get social care in the past year, with half of family carers revealing that they ended up in crisis situations, such as rushing their loved one to A&E, owing to a lack of support elsewhere.