MP’s warn the cost of caring for people with dementia is expected to rise by more than a third over the next eight years. It is thought that dementia care cost the UK around £20bn a year, including NHS, social care and carers’ time.
With such costs hitting the dementia care sector families may also start to struggle with funding dementia care for their loved ones.
This figure has caused a UK wide dementia crisis with people wondering how, with so many cuts being made in the economy, people with dementia will be able to pay for much-needed care.
PSP Healthcare, the award winning operators of Frome Care Village in Somerset, have recently unveiled a special £1m fund to assist with the increasing cost of providing nursing and dementia care for the elderly.
Wayne Shermon, Operations Director, told us “Our founders recognise the costs of nursing care can be very high and causes stress for families and supporters. A special fund has been set up which can be used to subsidise the cost of providing nursing care.”
The average cost of providing care for a resident with dementia is around £800 per week, however Somerset County Council currently only pay £522.27 per week.
Mr Shermon said: “The cost has increased significantly over the past few years, but government funding hasn’t caught up. We’ve been working closely with the PCT and Somerset County Council to ensure those requiring specialist services can by taking advantage of our subsidy fund.”
Over 800,000 people are estimated to be living with Dementia in the UK and this figure is estimated to triple in the next ten years.
A recent YouGov poll of more than 2,000 people for Alzheimer’s Research UK revealed dementia is the UKs biggest health fear.
The poll found that 31% of people surveyed feared dementia, 27% feared cancer, and 18% feared death.
