Eye care – Providing eye care for patients with dementia

Alzheimer’s Society is encouraging people to ‘act on dementia’ as part of its annual awareness-raising campaign, held from 16-22 May.

This year, Dementia Action Week focuses on the topic of diagnosis, following a sustained five-year drop in rates of diagnosis.

More than 200,000 people will develop dementia this year, the charity said, the equivalent of one person every three minutes. However, with rates of diagnosis reaching a five-year low. The organisation said: “tens of thousands of people are now living with undiagnosed dementia, without access to the vital care and support that a diagnosis can bring.”

A new survey released by Alzheimer’s Society to mark the campaign. They found that confusing the symptoms of dementia with signs of ageing was the biggest reason people delayed getting a diagnosis.

Previous findings by Alzheimer’s Research UK highlighted that the biggest risk factor for dementia is age. Though it is not an inevitable part of ageing. A person’s risk of developing dementia rises from one in 14 over the age of 65, to one in six over the age of 70. Overall, 70% of people in care homes have dementia or severe memory problems.

With an ageing population, and demand for domiciliary care growing exponentially, OT reached out to optometrists delivering care in patients’ own environments, to find out more about tailoring care for a person with a diagnosis of dementia.

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Eye care - Providing eye care for patients with dementia