Tag Archives: dementia

Neighbourhood watch groups could help with elderly care

July 15, 2013   Carers, disability, Older care

Neighbourhood watch groups in England could provide companionship and practical help for pensioners living alone, under an idea being considered.

15 July 2013 Last updated at 11:35

 Ministers say more collaboration is needed between the state and voluntary groups

Social care minister Norman Lamb said many older people were living “very lonely lives”, without family support.

While professional care remained vital, something extra was needed, he said.

The “principle of neighbourliness” could be extended to address the “extraordinary challenge” presented by an ageing society, he told the BBC.

There are 173,000 neighbourhood watch groups in England and Wales, a scheme which started in the 1980s to encourage local residents to report suspicious behaviour in their area and to help prevent burglaries.

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Have your say on dementia care at King’s Lynn hospital

July 14, 2013   Carers, dementia, Norfolk

West Norfolk residents will be given the chance to have their say on dementia care services in the area at an event being held at Lynn’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital next week.

Health news from the Lynn News, lynnnews.co.uk,

Published on the 13 July 2013

Officials say that the Dementia 2gether event, which takes place on Monday, has been organised in response to a high level of public concern in the borough about the condition and will help to influence service development.

Valerie Newton, the hospital’s deputy director of nursing and patient experience, said: “The aim of the event is to give local people current information on dementia and to give them an opportunity to discuss the experiences they have had in relation to dementia at the hospital.

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More needs to be done to tackle social isolation

July 11, 2013   Carers, dementia, internet

How to reduce social isolation in an age of declining social care budgets

More needs to be done to tackle social isolation, which affects many more people and puts them at greater risk of dementia

 

It is wrong to assume older people do not crave the benefits of technology which can help with reducing social isolation.

According to Age UK, the number of 55 to 64-year-olds living alone has increased by 50% since 1998. Social isolation is now thought to affect more than 1 million people in the UK, and the evidence that social isolation is a risk factor for dementia and shortens lifespan is becoming irrefutable.

While the causes of social isolation are multiple, if we are to stem the accelerating burden on social care and NHS, more needs to be done earlier to intervene for people at risk. But what are the alternatives, when local authorities face unprecedented funding cuts and have tightened their eligibility criteria for people with milder needs?

At a policy level, little is being done to extend independence in high risk groups in coming generations. Many commissioners are petrified at the projections five to 10 years from now as insufficient budgets will be there to provide care to this population. In my view, the government’s dementia strategy is inadequate as it provides limited focus on encouraging positive behaviours around cognitive health in a much larger at risk group. Yet the flipside is the public’s belief that any service, innovation or tool to enable independence should be provided by the state. This has to change.

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