Our Stakeholder Conversation - Dementia and Memory Loss

More than 80 people from across the voluntary and community sector attended our inaugural Stakeholder Conversation in Dorchester recently, marking the relaunch of our Stakeholder Advisory Group.

The Conversation on Dementia and Memory Loss represents the start of a series of dialogues we plan to host throughout the next 12 months, in partnership with the Dorset Voluntary and Community Sector Assembly (Dorset VCSA). It's aimed at finding shared perspectives and opportunities to collaborate on the support being offered to our residents.

The three-hour conference was co-led by our Interim Corporate Director for Adults Commissioning Mark Tyson and Jon Sloper, Interim Programme Director of the VCS Assembly, and included presentations from John Major, from the Alzheimer's Society Research Network and Dr Michele Board, the co-lead for the Ageing and Dementia Research Centre (ADRC) at Bournemouth University.

Mr Sloper said many among the VSC community had stressed the need for enhanced communications, better networking and engagement, clear representations from across the voluntary sector, greater collaboration as well as an enhance referral pathway from health and social care organisations.

Mr Major, who has 30 years of experience with dementia, including 18 years caring for his wife, congratulated the council for holding the conference and stressed the need for other councils to follow, saying they were not prepared for the challenges that lie ahead in terms of the ageing demographic: "We are dealing with a condition that in part causes at least one third of all deaths," he said.

He added that while there is still some way to go to find dementia's cause and cure, there are medicines that can help a small number of people alleviate or slow down some of the symptoms. One issue he wanted to see improved was the need for earlier diagnosis, which might mean that treatments could be more effective. Two research projects involving bloods are showing promise, he said, including one that may identify people who are at risk of development dementia but are not showing any cognitive issues.

Dr Board said that more than half of the UK public know someone who have been diagnosed with the condition but encouraging people to talk about it can be challenging. While most people with dementia and memory loss live in the community, it is seen as a stigma, and people feel afraid, scared and isolated.

One way of alleviating this is to challenge the language used. "People should never be defined as "dementia patients" or "suffering from dementia". It is always a person with dementia, always person first and not diagnosis, and we cannot assume someone is suffering. We need to consider the language we use to describe people."

Dr Board highlighted the need to consider risk factors for dementia, including hypertension and vascular disease and ways to reduce these factors. This also includes dietary modifications. An example of some of the research at ADRC includes the development of a toolkit that is helping transform nutritional care for people with dementia and has reached more than 3,000 people. The ARDC are also beginning to look at the experience of veterans with dementia and potentially additional risk factors for dementia this group have.

There were a range of short presentations from guest organisations, highlighting the wide range of activities and support available to people with dementia and memory loss. These included Growing Compassionate Communities, Age UK NSW Dorset, Admiral Nurse, Help and Care, Dorset Healthcare, Shaftesbury and District Dementia Friendly Community, Dorset Council and In Jolly Good Company.

Councillor Steve Robinson, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, welcomed the conference, saying it was particularly important given the county's demographics, which show that 30% of Dorset's population is older than 65 compared with the national average of 18.5%: "If Dorset was a country, it would have one of the oldest demographics in the world.

"We need to recognise that people are ageing together. We want to make ageing enjoyed rather than endured. This means we needs to understand the blockages - such as dropping road curbs - and ensure that Dorset is an Age Friendly Community," he added.