36 Dementia - Housing and Care Homes for those with Dementia

Housing provider teams - planners, designers, developers, housing managers, professional advisers, etc - play an increasingly important role in enabling those with dementia to remain at home for as long as possible. In many respects they are a key to early diagnosis, and hence treatment in a safe and secure environment - their own home. The last sentence reflects the national imperative to reduce hospital admissions of those with dementia. 

From now on dementia does or will reflect, perhaps slowly, in the education, training and continuing professional development of all the team's players. 

Some local dementia action alliances will be developed to include housing as one of the themes. Some will demonstrate the action on this topic to include a closer workng configuration of the following:

• social care services
• housing services
• fire and rescue services.

The first actions are likely to training and career development of staff in terms of:

• awareness of national and local policy for dementia
• awareness of the types, symptoms, and life journey with dementia
• prevalence of diagnosis and its growth
• the likely impacts of dementia oplanninn community social care, housing,  residential care settings and other services. 

A first approach might be awareness and information sessions for some staff being able to voluntarily become dementia friends. All staff  are likely to need something similar but this might be included in sessions involving work-related topics on dementia. for housing these might include:

• planning and development aspects for dementia 
• design of housing and care settings for dementia
• design of green infrastructure (gardens, open spaces etc) for dementia
• interior retro-design and retro-furnishing 
• built-in or retro-fitted assistive technology in the homes and care settings for  those with dementia

5A National Dementia Strategies [Update 8 - 29/12/13]

INTRODUCTION
On 18 April 2013 Alzheimer's Dementia International named nine countries as having government led national dementia plans (strategies). They were Australia, Denmark, Finland, France, Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, UK, and USA. It stated that several other countries have non-governmant led national dementia plans, eg Canada, India, Ireland, and New Zealand. 

This post draws occasional news of international and national dementia strategies as an on-going theme - linked in particular to the G8 Summit in the UK December 2013.  It is not intended to replicate other sources of information.

INTERNATIONAL 
G8 Dementia Summit
In December 2013 G8 countries met in United Kingdom and agreed a joint policy framework for dementia research with the view to finding a cure by 2025.

OECD
The G8 Summit gave an opportunity for the OECD to respond by addressing dementia with an insightful report, namely:

http://www.oecd.org/sti/addressing-dementia-the-oecd-response.pdf

Alzheimer's Global Initiative (AGI)
A nine point international approach to dementia initiated by AGI.

http://alzglobalinitiative.org/cms/

Australia
About 200,000 Australians live with dementia. It seems that Alzheimer's Australia are spearheading a national approach to the disease - more information of goernment's role and activities are being sought..

Canada
At the G8 Summit Canada outlined the efforts on their strategy for multi-faceted research into dementia. A global legacy workshop is being planned with France - it will be held in 2014. 

England
For the last four years England's national vision, strategies and policies for dementia have been formulated and their implementation has begun. [Post 5B]

Finland
#Finland's dementia work started in May 2012.

France
Although #France's national dementia strategy was first prepared for 2001 there have ben a succession of three period plans since then. At the G8 Summit it was announced that a global legacy workshop is being planned with Canada - it will be held in 2014. 

Germany
The year 2012 saw the beginning of work towards a dementia strategy in #Germany.

Hong Kong 
South China Post (online article -updated 15/8/2012) is suggestive of a need for a developing dementia strategy in Hong Kong.

Indonesia
Unable to gather information about the national dementia strategy but understand that diagnosis to WHO standards are carried out in at laest one area. 

Japan
The "Orange Plan" of September 2012 sets out the national strategy of measures to combat dementia. It was published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
During the period of the G8 Summit on dementia a party of health officials visited England to explore local services for dementia.

Korea
A Toronto conerence paper (2012) inducated that a national dementia strategy and budget with pilot studies were in hand.

New Zealand
Alzheimer's Society New Zealand has developed an eight point National Strategy 2010 -2015 which is supported by the government and other bodies in the country.

Serbia
At ministerial level the "Open the Doors" initiative to reduce stigma, including that towards demntia, was started in 2009 - by the Ministry of Health and Social Policy. 

United Kingdom
Dementia strategies are currently being implemented in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. [For #England see Post 5B.]