With cases of dementia predicted to exceed 150 million by 2050 and 1.6 million within the UK alone, it is more crucial than ever for the care sector to have the resources in place to fight the coming dementia crisis. The Covid-19 pandemic has laid bare the risks of our health system being overwhelmed, but it has also given us the start of a blueprint to understand how the NHS can adapt to health emergencies and fast track diagnosis and treatment. To fully respond to the crisis in dementia cases, we should be looking to our actions in the pandemic to streamline and reinforce our care system. 

Dementia awareness

Dementia is currently the fastest growing condition and the leading cause of death in the UK. However, it remains relatively misunderstood – recent research from Social-Ability for World Alzheimer’s Day found that two-thirds of people were unable to differentiate early symptoms of dementia from normal signs of ageing, viewing it as nothing more than a “memory loss disease” and an inevitable part of growing old.

Much like during the Covid-19 pandemic, an understanding of a condition or virus plays a huge role in managing it. Understanding the symptoms of Covid-19 as early as possible helped people to spot the signs and take the necessary precautions to prevent spread of the condition. The same is key for dementia. Greater public awareness is urgently needed to ensure recognition of the early symptoms of the condition, and encourage individuals to seek early diagnoses.

Over 50,000 dementia cases were missed during the pandemic, making it vital for people to be diagnosed as early as possible. In the case of dementia early diagnosis is vital to provide people with the necessary support and treatment to continue living independently, and will stave off the building up of a waiting list.

Futureproofing treatment

The care sector’s current struggle is highlighted by further research from Social-Ability, showing that 82% of people feel that the sector will be unable to cope with a rise in demand. With care workers overstretched and a fifth of care homes in the UK considered inadequate, any surge in demand threatens to overwhelm the sector. Increasing the capacity for the dementia care system is a tried and tested solution – the opening of the Nightingale hospitals to cope with Covid-19 patients proved that the NHS was able to adapt at short notice to reduce pressure in hospitals across the country. Similarly, the rollout of rapid diagnostic centres will spread people out across more facilities, allowing for faster diagnoses along with more attentive care.

However, this will require further funding from the Government. Despite the Prime Minister’s election pledge to double funding for dementia research to £160m annually, the budget has currently decreased to £75m. Though there are low hopes for the discovery of a cure for dementia, the funding will support the development of preventative medicines and technology, along with procedures that will assist people living with the condition.

Tech support

Dementia treatment in care homes is currently reliant on expensive and often harmful medications – care home residents are prescribed an average of seven medications a day, costing the NHS around £250m a year. Instead, costs can be cut and allocated to technology – during the pandemic, the shift online for GP appointments and to using the NHS app offered a new way to access healthcare. The adoption of technology made costs and workloads more efficient, improving accessibility for patients to book and attend appointments from the ease of their homes. The same benefits can be seen by improving hybrid healthcare for dementia, with digitisation improving the allocation of resources and the quality of care available to everyone.

While technology cannot replace human care, the benefits in dementia care can already be seen. Artificial intelligence is now able to accomplish a variety of tasks, from predicting dementia risks to monitoring a person’s health and behaviour, allowing them to live a more independent life. Furthermore, interactive light technology such as Social-Ability’s Happiness Programme provides holistic therapy that prioritises the social, cognitive and mental wellbeing of individuals. Through a range of games, the Happiness Programme allows residents to interact with each other and remain active, thereby also reducing the workload of care workers.

By taking dementia seriously and dedicating time and effort into innovations to treat the condition, we can determine a clear roadmap out. Greater awareness, increased capacity, and adapting to technology have all proven successful during the pandemic. We now know how to prevent a health crisis from escalating, and it is important we do it quickly. 
JOHN RAMSAY, Founder and Managing Director of Social-Ability