Dementia isn't curable yet but Boris 'can cure the care system' causing avoidable hospital admissions

Avoidable emergency hospital admissions for dementia patients rose by 27 per cent between 2015 and 2019, with the Alzheimer’s Society warning that the numbers will rise further if the social care system isn’t cured now.

This Dementia Action Week (17-23 May), the charity has published data it gathered from 45 trusts under the Freedom of Information Act. It discovered the number of emergency hospital admissions for people with dementia increased from 60,023 to 76,369 between 2015-2019.

In 2019, 65 per cent of all emergency admissions of people with dementia were for avoidable illnesses and injuries caused by failures in care.

The charity asked how many over-65s with dementia had experienced an emergency admission that could have been avoided through improved, earlier support. This included falls, delirium, gastroenteritis, urinary tract infections, dehydration, flu and chest infections.

#CureTheCareSystem campaign

Kate Lee, chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Society has now warned that “without urgent action, avoidable hospital admissions will skyrocket", costing the NHS millions.

To mark Dementia Action Week, the Alzheimer’s Society has released a new TV advert calling on the Government to ‘cure the care system’.

As new figures highlighted a rise in avoidable emergency hospital admissions for people with dementia, TV personality Tony Robinson, whose parents have been affected by dementia, has been campaigning outside the Houses of Parliament with a giant pill bottle to demand Prime Minister Boris Johnson ‘cure the social care system’.

Standing alongside people with dementia as well as the charity’s chief executive, Mr Robinson called on the public to sign the charity’s petition to fix social care.

The giant pill bottle with neon pills listed the cures for social care (suggested by people affected by dementia) including ‘carer support’, ‘access’, ‘funding’, ‘parity with NHS’ and ‘quality’.

Sir Tony Robinson said: “We can’t cure dementia yet; but the Government can cure the social care system, and they must act now to prevent further heartbreak and distress for thousands of families across the UK.

“I urge everyone in the UK to sign the Dementia Action Week petition. It is vital that the social care system is one that we can be proud of.

"For too long, families have felt forgotten by a system that is unfair, difficult to access and inconsistent, not giving people with dementia the care they so desperately need.” Elisabeth is 76-years-old and has dementia. She stood alongside Tony Robinson in Westminster to launch the campaign.

Elizabeth: Sign petition so ‘government doesn’t abandon us’

Elizabeth said: ‘Like many others, my experience of dementia is a personal one, and we need a system that reflects this.

“When I was first diagnosed, it was so alarming and difficult to know where to turn. I urge everyone to sign the petition to make a real difference to people like me across the UK. It is so important for me to see change, and to raise awareness of the situation facing thousands of people in the UK so the Government doesn’t abandon us.”

Trevor whose wife Yvonne aged 65 has dementia was also present at Westminster. Trevor said: ‘For too long now, people affected by dementia and their families have felt abandoned by the social care system. When my wife was diagnosed, it was just so difficult to navigate the system to understand both the care support and benefits to which she was entitled.”

This Dementia Action Week, the charity has said that ‘while dementia isn’t curable yet, the care system is’.

The charity wants the governments to honour its promise to rebuild the broken social care system with ‘a concrete budgeted plan’ including funding solution so that people with dementia people get high quality, accessible social care, free at the point of use, like the NHS.

The charity's chief executive added: “Coronavirus has laid bare the cracks in our broken social care system; not only have people with dementia been hit hardest by the pandemic, but on top of that they are facing a care system that is inaccessible, costly and inconsistent.

"We want people affected by dementia to know they aren’t alone. Transforming dementia care must be the legacy of the pandemic.”

To join the #CureTheCareSystem campaign, sign the charity’s petition click here.