MP backs urgent dementia care improvement plan
“We all know someone who has been affected by dementia. No one should have to face that alone.”
Toby Perkins, MP for Chesterfield, met Dementia UK at Labour Party Conference to discuss what needs to change so that no one faces dementia alone.
Still, too many families are left to cope alone until they reach a crisis point. Only 9% of carers with first-hand experience were offered support at an early stage.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to reform social care, establishing a National Care Service in the next parliament. The government says this will be free at the point of entry, providing personal care for older people.
Toby said that through the ongoing independent commission run by Baroness Louise Casey – which will recommend how this service will be introduced and what it will look like – and the government’s Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia, there is an opportunity to transform dementia care in England.
Toby added: “We all know someone who has been affected by dementia. No one should have to face that alone.
"The government has made a welcome pledge to reform adult social care so that all people have access to the care they need, and to speed up dementia diagnosis to 18 weeks, early diagnosis improves outcomes for sufferers and their families.
"I will be pushing for government to enact on their ambitious plans as soon as humanly possible, so that we have a health and social care system that everyone affected by dementia can rely on.”