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

Friday, 2 April 2010

Should you be Paying for Care?

The Alzheimer's Society has recently begun to focus on the core inequalities within NHS Continuing Care decisions, treating the needs of those with dementia as 'social' rather than 'health' needs and therefore minimised within the assessment process. One very real outcome of this semantic confusion, is that termed as a 'social need' it is to be delivered by Local Authorities and is subject to means testing.



They have a good section on their website on these questions and also run an excellent Volunteer-led telephone helpline on NHS Continuing Healthcare. The very fact such a dedicated helpline is needed tells its own tale, and the individuals who take the calls all speak from personal experience.

When I have managed to resolve the issues of care for my mother, I will be volunteering on this and helping to advocate for those without support.



http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/downloads.php?categoryID=200203

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