The social care crisis is a dementia crisis.

The spring budget was an opportunity to take social care seriously. 

While the £1bn announced for 2017/18 is only half of what is needed, this is the first indication of long overdue national leadership.

We all know that a sticking plaster doesn’t heal a wound. 

This is why the announcement of a green paper, to sort out long-term funding of social care, could be a much needed ray of hope in what has been a dark time.

If we’re optimistic, it is a sign of much needed leadership, though long overdue, from national government on this issue. 

But they must follow through and deliver change that fixes a broken system for people with dementia and ends the disgrace that is the current state of care in this country.

Dementia care and social care are, largely, the same thing.

Where other conditions need medication or devices to alleviate symptoms, the symptoms of dementia affect people’s ability to do day to day things – washing, dressing, eating.

With no cure on the horizon and few treatments, people with dementia are relying heavily on care to meet the basic needs caused by the symptoms of their disease. 

Social care is the only treatment they have. 

We are still a long way off and meaningful change will take time.

Until such long term structural changes are in force, people with dementia will still have to pay for their own care, topping up or selling their family homes to do so.

We now have a ray of light and even more reason to call for greater support for our campaign to Fix Dementia Care.

For many people with dementia, social care is the only treatment they get for their disease, they deserve better.

I’d like to ask your readers to help us Fix Dementia Care by visiting alzheimers.org.uk/fixdementiacare 

LORNA ROBERTSON
Alzheimer’s Society operations manager