Cameron Set to Tackle the Stigma of
Dementia as He Puts the Crisis on the Scale
of HIV
By John Hutchinson,
The Daily Mail
March 25, 2012
United Kingdom
Britain
is set to tackle the national crisis posed by
dementia after Prime Minister David Cameron
compared its impact to that of HIV.
He
will say it is a 'scandal' that the UK has not
done more to address dementia, which is
thought to affect 670,000 people although
about 400,000 have not been diagnosed and do
not know they have it. The cost to UK society
is estimated at £23 billion.
Over
the next 10 years, the number with the disease
is expected to rise to one million.
Action
required: Dementia and the stigma associated
with it, is the next 'crisis' to be focused
on by the government (Posed by model)
Launching a
'national challenge on dementia', Mr Cameron
will set out plans to step up research into
cures and treatments and to ensure that the
health and social care systems are equipped to
deal with the problem.
Overall funding for dementia research is to
reach £66 million by 2015, from
£26.6 million 2010.
'One of the greatest challenges of our time is
what I'd call the quiet crisis, one that
steals lives and tears at the hearts of
families, but that relative to its impact is
hardly acknowledged,' he will say.
'Dementia is simply a terrible disease. And it
is a scandal that we as a country haven't kept
pace with it. The level of diagnosis,
understanding and awareness of dementia is
shockingly low. It is as though we've been in
collective denial.'
No hiding:
David Cameron has likened the dementia
crisis on the same scale as HIV
The Prime Minister will
say that the costs associated with the disease
are already higher than those for cancer, heart
disease or stroke.
'So my
argument today is that we've got to treat this
like the national crisis it is. We need an
all-out fight-back against this disease; one
that cuts across society.
'We did it
with cancer in the 70s. With HIV in the 80s and
90s. We fought the stigma, stepped up to the
challenge and made massive in-roads into
fighting these killers.
'Now we've
got to do the same with dementia. This is a
personal priority of mine, and it's got an
ambition to match.
'That
ambition: nothing less than for Britain to be a
world leader in dementia research and care.'
Shirley
Cramer, acting chief executive of Alzheimer's
Research UK, said Mr Cameron's announcement was
an 'important step' in recognising and solving
the challenge presented by dementia.
'David
Cameron's announcements are a turning point in
our battle to defeat dementia,' he said.
'Of course,
investment must continue to increase if we are
to avert the drastic economic costs of dementia
that lie in wait. Alzheimer's Research UK looks
forward to working with Government to ensure
that this new funding achieves what is so
desperately needed - new treatments and
therapies.'
Jeremy
Hughes, chief executive of Alzheimer's Society,
said: 'Today's announcement by the Prime
Minister marks an unprecedented step towards
making the UK a world leader in dementia.
'Doubling
funding for research, tackling diagnosis and
calling for a radical shift in the way we talk,
think and act on dementia will help to transform
lives.
Dementia must be
understood and not stigmatised
'There are
currently 800,000 people with dementia yet too
many are not able to live well with the
condition. The PM is leading the way, but from
Plymouth to Preston, from the boardroom to bus
drivers, we all have a role to play.'
Sir Mark
Walport, director of the Wellcome Trust, said:
'Rising to this challenge will require
excellence in medical research, so we can better
understand the biology of dementia and use that
insight to improve diagnosis and treatment.
'The
dementia challenge, however, will not be
resolved by the natural sciences alone. It will
also require progress in social care, so that
patients can be helped to live at home for
longer, and so that relatives who care for their
loved ones receive the support they need. And it
will require action to raise awareness of this
devastating condition, so that it is understood
and not stigmatised.'
But town
hall leaders warned there was a 'very real
crisis' in the provision of care for the elderly
and vulnerable.
David
Rogers, chair of the Local Government
Association's community wellbeing board, said:
'Without fundamental reform and sufficient
funding we risk losing the public's trust and
confidence in our ability to do the best for
people in later life.
'We now need politicians to transcend political
point-scoring and wake up to the ticking
demographic time bomb this country is facing.
'There needs to be urgent action to ensure the
way we offer support to older people is fairer,
simpler and fit for purpose in order to truly
meet the needs of the most vulnerable members of
our society.'
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