Alzheimer's Society Early Diagnosis Campaign
There are currently 800,000 people in the UK with dementia and there will be over a million people with dementia by 2021.
Of the estimated 44,598 people currently living with dementia in Wales only 38.5% have received a formal diagnosis compared to 44% in England, 63% in Northern Ireland and 64% in Scotland*.
Well-informed GPs and healthcare professionals are crucial to both diagnosing dementia and supporting people to live well and a diagnosis of dementia can offer a lot of help including:
- Providing people with an understanding of what is happening to them
- Opening doors to information
- Providing support services and medication which can make a real difference
- Helping people to live well with dementia and allowing time to plan for the future
The Alzheimer’s Society runs a variety of services in your local area and we can send you information on what is available and to talk to you and your staff about the support available for people living with dementia and their families.
The services it provides include dementia cafés, ‘Singing for the Brain’ groups, advocacy and befriending services.
The Society also has a Dementia Support Workers team who can provide home visits offering emotional and practical support and signposting people to other available services.
We've also developed tools in conjunction with the Society to help GPs diagnose and manage dementia including an online training module - developed in partnership with the BMJ - with further information available on our Free Dementia Training page.
The following links also provide resources for both mental health care professionals and newly diagnised dementia sufferers and their carers:
- Alzhemer's Society - Health Professionals Section - Find out more about dementia in your local area, resources for you and your patients, and training opportunities
- Living Well With Dementia After Diagnosis Bilingual Information Pack - Links to a downloadable information pack for people newly diagnosed with dementia with hard copies available at the memory service and provided on diagnosis
If you'd like further information about dementia services across Wales please download the following booklets and use the contact details they contain to get in touch with your local office :
- Alzheimer’s Society in Wales: Support services and information
- Cymdeithas Alzheimer yng Nghymru: Gwybodaeth a gwasanaethau cymorth
If you have any other questions please contact us via email at lhills@rcgp.org.uk or on 029 2050 4516.
* Tesco, Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Scotland (2012) Mapping the Dementia Gap - study produced by Tesco, Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Scotland
