Tag Archives: dementia
The plight of Scotland’s carers must be addressed,
The plight of Scotland’s carers
Apr 24 2012 By Craig McQueen
tommy whitelaw
EIGHTEEN months ago, full-time carer Tommy Whitelaw was struggling to cope.
His mother Joan, 72, has vascular dementia, leaving her unable to perform the simplest of tasks or even recognise him.
As the illness progressed, Tommy found himself isolated, cut off from friends and family and from services, which could help.
With the stress taking its toll, the Glasgow 49-year-old visited his GP and began getting some of the help he needed. But Tommy knew he wasn’t the only one and decided then to do something about it.
He embarked on a tour of Scotland, collecting letters from carers detailing their experiences.
It’s an uphill struggle with dementia
It’s an uphill struggle with dementia – and there’s not enough awareness out there
Carers of loved ones with dementia have spoken out about the difficulties they face – ahead of a roadshow visiting Scunthorpe for the first time.
With more than 2,000 people estimated to be living with dementia in North Lincolnshire, the Alzheimer’s Society’s roadshow will provide much-needed information and advice about the condition.
800,000 vulnerable elderly fighting to stay in their homes
Some 800,000 vulnerable elderly people are struggling to live in their own homes without any state-provided home help, say campaigners who argue the most vulnerable in society are being “catastrophically let down” by social services
By Stephen Adams, Medical Correspondent
6:30AM BST 16 Apr 2012
Councils have slashed spending on social care in the last few years, as Westminster has cut local authority funding.
Now more than four in five councils (82 per cent) will only fund home help for people with substantial or critical care needs, up from about half in 2005, according to official figures.
The result is that around 800,000 older people out of two million with care needs – many with dementia – are trying to live without any state-provided care, according to the charity Age UK.
It has joined forces with the British Geriatrics Society to lobby ministers for higher funding for social care services.
