Alzheimer’s campaign pushes for early diagnosis
Following their 2009 leaflet delivery campaign which reached 80,000 people, the Alzheimer’s Society is sending leaflets and posters to 10,000 GP surgeries throughout the UK and Northern Ireland in a bid to promote early diagnosis.
Their previous campaign saw one in five of those who requested further information receive a dementia diagnosis and with experts predicting dementia levels reaching one million in just 15 years, it is essential that early help and diagnosis is promoted.
Care Services minister Paul Burstow has said that there are almost 750,000 people currently living with dementia in the UK and it is one of the largest health challenges facing the society and the government. However, a huge number of people are waiting too long before reporting their symptoms and the current challenge is highlighting the importance of seeking help without delay.
Ruth Sutherland, acting chief executive of Alzheimer’s Society spoke about certain factors such as memory loss, forgetting the name of friends or everyday objects, difficulty following conversations or TV programmes, repeating yourself and anger and anxiety fuelled by your forgetfulness, all of which could be warning signs of dementia.
”The sooner people seek help, the sooner they can start living their lives to the full.” She said.
Without receiving a proper diagnosis sufferers will not have access to the appropriate help and support. If you recognise any of the above symptoms, or you have noticed a family member or a friend is exhibiting warning signs then it is essential that you pay a visit to your GP who will be able to provide you with a diagnosis so early treatment can begin.
Though there is currently no way to halt or reverse the disease, there are certain medications and treatments such as counselling and talk therapies that are said to contribute to its slowing down. If you would like to find out more about how a counsellor may be able to help please visit the dementia section of our site. It is also worth noting that supporting a loved one with dementia can be extremely distressing and talking to a counsellor may also help family come to terms with what is happening. To read more about this please click here.