Scots want to support those with Dementia

Research into dementia produced by the Life Changes Trust, in association with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, has shown that nine out of ten Scots would be willing to help a neighbour with mild dementia, while a remarkable four fifths (80 per cent) would help a neighbour with a more severe form of dementia.
The research comes as Age Scotland begins our own project on Early Stage Dementia, funded by the Life Changes Trust.  The project aims to influence public policy, deliver dementia friendly training both within the charity and our network of member groups and to ensure our information and advice resources - including Silver Line Scotland [link] - are each dementia-friendly.
Age Scotland's Early Stage Dementia Team Leader & Policy Officer, Greg McCracken, said "This research is heartening in revealing a strong desire by individuals to support people through their experience of dementia.  However, more needs to be done to raise awareness of the role which healthy lifestyles have to play in reducing the risk of dementia.  Furthermore, we must ensure a greater rate of diagnosis in order that people with dementia, and their carers, access the support and services to which they are entitled at the earliest possible stage."
Anna Buchanan, Director for the Life Changes Trust dementia programme in Scotland, said: "It is encouraging that Scottish people appear to have a generally positive attitude towards people living with dementia and their carers and want to help. We need to capitalise on that and ensure that we become increasingly dementia friendly as a nation. It is worrying, however, that general awareness about prevention is still relatively low and that people do not understand that taking action now may prevent some types of dementia in the future. This is an important public health message that we need to get across."
A copy of the research report is available here.

Research into dementia produced by the Life Changes Trust, in association with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, has shown that nine out of ten Scots would be willing to help a neighbour with mild dementia, while a remarkable four fifths (80 per cent) would help a neighbour with a more severe form of dementia.

The research comes as Age Scotland begins our own project on Early Stage Dementia, funded by the Life Changes Trust.  The project aims to influence public policy, deliver dementia friendly training both within the charity and our network of member groups and to ensure our information and advice resources - including Silver Line Scotland  - are each dementia-friendly.

Age Scotland's Early Stage Dementia Team Leader & Policy Officer, Greg McCracken, said "This research is heartening in revealing a strong desire by individuals to support people through their experience of dementia.  However, more needs to be done to raise awareness of the role which healthy lifestyles have to play in reducing the risk of dementia.  Furthermore, we must ensure a greater rate of diagnosis in order that people with dementia, and their carers, access the support and services to which they are entitled at the earliest possible stage."

Anna Buchanan, Director for the Life Changes Trust dementia programme in Scotland, said: "It is encouraging that Scottish people appear to have a generally positive attitude towards people living with dementia and their carers and want to help. We need to capitalise on that and ensure that we become increasingly dementia friendly as a nation. It is worrying, however, that general awareness about prevention is still relatively low and that people do not understand that taking action now may prevent some types of dementia in the future. This is an important public health message that we need to get across."

A copy of the research report is available here.