Dementia sufferers need more specialist homes to cut hospital admissions

Improving homes and making them fit to deal with the challenges posed by people with dementia can drive the number of people going to hospital down, and the number of people returning home up, writes Amy Swan

Imagine the fear when suddenly finding yourself surrounded by strange people, in a place you don’t recognise, not knowing how you got there and why. Imagine the distress when you look into the eyes of the person in front of you, whose face you find familiar, but whose name you start struggling to remember. Imagine the confusion when they tell you that you’ve known each other for decades, yet at times you don’t recall ever meeting.

For many of the 700,000 people with dementia in the UK today and their families, this is an upsetting reality. And because we’re all living longer – thanks to massive strides in medicine, nutrition and hygiene – it is, according to the Alzheimer’s Society, an alarming scenario that is set to become more common: by 2021, one million people in the UK will have dementia. This is set to rise to 1.7 million people in 2051.

Sadly, there is no cure for dementia. But, as teams of world-class scientists and doctors frantically search for a cure, or at least a treatment that significantly slows its onset, there’s something we can do right now to improve the lives of people with dementia: build more specialist homes with integrated care and support services.

An estimated 40 per cent of hospital beds in England are occupied by people with dementia. Currently 60 per cent of them enter hospital from their own home, but just 36 per cent return after being discharged. Improving their homes and making them fit to deal with the challenges posed by people with dementia – for example, by putting in ramps and grab-rails, and considering how lighting, acoustics, layout and the design of outdoor spaces can help them around their homes – we can drive the number of people going to hospital down, and the number of people returning home up.

But there is more that we can do. Instead of having to wait for a person to have a fall in their home or exhibit a sudden escalation in their symptoms before installing these adaptations, visiting housing staff – trained to identify early signs of dementia – can help support them and their families to get a diagnosis. This can add crucial months, if not years, before the symptoms become really difficult to cope with, and will let families take collective decisions on future care.

Rochdale Borough Housing is one of the housing associations pioneering this approach. Residents with dementia can have a fall detector fitted on their waist band, which instantly alerts the housing association’s response centre if they have a fall. First aid-trained staff respond swiftly to each alarm, and are equipped with specialist emergency lifting cushions to assist with lifting tenants who have fallen, so no manual handling is involved. Property exit sensors detect when someone leaves the building, and can prevent people with dementia getting lost in the surrounding neighbourhood – something that is extremely distressing for both these residents and their families, particularly when the police need to be called.

We need a shift in how we think about dementia in England. We need local councils and health and wellbeing boards to think about how they can utilise the expertise of housing associations that provide good homes for people with a range of care and support needs. Together, they can improve immeasurably the lives of people who develop dementia, be that an older parent, grandparent or – quite possibly, in the future – you.

So, now imagine a slightly different world. Imagine, thanks to early diagnosis, being sound of mind and making decisions on your future care for when your symptoms get worse. Imagine knowing that your home is adapted and prepared as much as possible to extend the amount of time you can stay independent. And imagine that, although you may have trouble remembering the person opposite, the home you are able to stay in is littered with years of evidence that somebody will always care for you.

Source Public Service.co.uk