What's This All About?

My mother (who is nearly 80) has mixed type vascular dementia and Alzheimer's. Her 'treatment' since she first began to show symptoms now over 18 months ago has been a catalogue of stereotypes, unprofessionalism and disinterest. It has opened our eyes to the collective inability to treat dementia, and the mostly elderly group suffering from it, with any real concern. This blog is an attempt to provide a space to bring together both our experience and key points and links to information and advice for others in a similar position. We hope it will ensure that this collective 'not seeing' of people with dementia and those caring for them in all senses is brought into the open. You can also join See The Person on Facebook

Thursday, 15 April 2010

My Name Is Not Dementia

Today the Alzheimer's Society published their inportant report My Name is Not Dementia - full details at http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=200149&documentID=1339.

Importantly this focuses on the stereotypical and widespread sense that once a diagnosis of dementia is confirmed, quality of life issues for the person with dementia are not important. It also reflects on the different perspectives of those with dementia from those with a duty of care towards them.

As Sir Terry Pratchett says in his Introduction to the report:

"Dementia is all too often a fact of life, and no longer out of sight and out of mind. And it requires not just care but also understanding and, to be frank, policing as well. There is an opportunity here to give the lie to some of the clichés of care. We have to learn to be good at it. "

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