News
Council welcomes new Dementia Action Alliance
A year after the Council’s report Dementia: ethical issues found that more must be done to support carers and to tackle the stigma of dementia, a Dementia Action Alliance has been set up with the aim of greatly improving quality of life for people with dementia.
The Alliance is made up of 45 organisations including the Department of Health, Alzheimer’s Society, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Royal College of GPs. Each member organisation has outlined the action it will take to help people with dementia and their carers between now and 2014 in the National Dementia Declaration, which has been drawn up in partnership with people with dementia and their carers.
The Council is encouraged to see that recommendations made in Dementia: ethical issues are being taken forward in some of the actions outlined in the National Dementia Declaration. For example, the following contributions from the Care Quality Commission and the Royal College of Nursing address the Council’s conclusions that an ethical approach to care is one that recognises the value of the person with dementia, as well as the interests of carers who provide their day-to-day support, and that it is important that healthcare professionals and care workers treat families as ‘partners in care’ to reflect the solidarity shown within the family.
Care Quality Commission
We have identified three key areas for improvement where CQC would like to make a difference over the next five years:
We will support and lobby for the development of services which enable people with dementia and their carers to feel included, involved and consulted with and that meet individual needs. We promote the delivery of person-centred care, information and support by knowledgeable, skilled staff that is compassionate, promotes dignity, choice and ultimately helps to improve quality of life. The RCN is currently supporting a national project on the care of people with dementia in acute care settings and will be working collaboratively with stakeholders to develop and disseminate this work.
Links
The Alliance is made up of 45 organisations including the Department of Health, Alzheimer’s Society, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Royal College of GPs. Each member organisation has outlined the action it will take to help people with dementia and their carers between now and 2014 in the National Dementia Declaration, which has been drawn up in partnership with people with dementia and their carers.
The Council is encouraged to see that recommendations made in Dementia: ethical issues are being taken forward in some of the actions outlined in the National Dementia Declaration. For example, the following contributions from the Care Quality Commission and the Royal College of Nursing address the Council’s conclusions that an ethical approach to care is one that recognises the value of the person with dementia, as well as the interests of carers who provide their day-to-day support, and that it is important that healthcare professionals and care workers treat families as ‘partners in care’ to reflect the solidarity shown within the family.
Care Quality Commission
We have identified three key areas for improvement where CQC would like to make a difference over the next five years:
- Ensuring that the care of people with dementia becomes more people centred, including a greater focus on person centred care plans
We will support and lobby for the development of services which enable people with dementia and their carers to feel included, involved and consulted with and that meet individual needs. We promote the delivery of person-centred care, information and support by knowledgeable, skilled staff that is compassionate, promotes dignity, choice and ultimately helps to improve quality of life. The RCN is currently supporting a national project on the care of people with dementia in acute care settings and will be working collaboratively with stakeholders to develop and disseminate this work.
Links
- Visit the Dementia Action Alliance website
- Read the National Dementia Declaration
- Find out more about the Council’s report Dementia: ethical issues