A European study recently revealed that brain disorders cost Europe €800 billion each year, but the social cost is perhaps even greater than the economic one.
Anybody who has ever watched a loved one living with chronic dementia can testify that it is a terrifying disorder which can take the person you love and transform them into somebody who you hardly recognise. Dementia can be caused by either disease or injury, and it usually manifests in the form of memory disorders, personality changes or impaired reasoning.
There are many types of dementia; the condition is progressive, but the speed of the progression depends on the individual person and which form of dementia they are suffering from.
Dementia affects men and women without prejudice. It is thought that 1.25% of the UK population is afflicted; that’s about 750,000 people and although the overwhelming majority of these are over 65, it can affect the young too. Currently around 16,000 people in the UK under the age of 65 are living with the condition.
Unfortunately, most forms of dementia are incurable; although medication exists which can alleviate some of the symptoms of some forms of dementia.
In the later stages of dementia, the person affected will struggle to carry out everyday tasks and will become increasingly dependent on other people. It is at this stage that people often turn to live in care providers for help.
Live in care is increasingly being seen as a preferable choice of care as it allows the person suffering with dementia to remain in their own home, surrounding by their own belongings, receiving specialist one to one care and attention, 24 hour a day from a trained and experienced carer. This familiarity of environment and routine reduces anxiety and helps ensure the person in question lives as independent life as possible.
Helping Hands Home Care has been providing 24 hour quality live-in-care services throughout England and Wales for over twenty years. If you would like to discuss our services, you can call us in complete confidence on 0808 180 9455.
