Select a region
Jersey's dementia rates are expected to soar over the next 20 years as the ageing population grows – but it seems the island is already struggling to keep pace.
Charities have laid bare how elderly islanders are being left stranded in hospital settings and the workforce is being put under strain due to a lack of appropriate facilities locally, and they are calling for urgent action from Government to resolve it.
According to analysis by Public Health, dementia rates could go up by as much as 52% by 2043.
News that the number of islanders living with the condition will grow isn't new. In fact, a Dementia Strategy for dealing with just that has been on the agenda for more than a decade, and the document, which will lay out the future pathway, is due to be published next month – many months after originally promised.
But charities have told Express the pressures are already here and now, and the situation is only going to get more challenging without action...
Patricia Winchester, the head of an independent mental health advocacy service called My Voice, has called for action from the government to re-open specialist dementia wards and improve care for patients.
She explained that the lack of facilities adds to the ongoing problem of older patients becoming trapped in the hospital while they await onward care elsewhere, and that patients, families, carers, and the healthcare system are suffering as a result.
"It's time the government take a long-term view, rather than a 'next election coming up' view," she said.
"The public need to make a noise about their concerns. We should stand up and make clear that we are not ashamed of dementia but we are ashamed of the lack of planning for dementia."
Oak and Maple Wards, which closed in 2020, provided specialist care for advanced dementia patients who were considered too labour-intensive for care homes.
With these wards now closed, the only remaining unit focused on caring for persons over the age of 65 years suffering from advanced memory problems is Beech Ward at Clinique Pinel in St Saviour — which is supposed to be a short-term assessment ward.
This, she said, has created a situation where there is no suitable location for some advanced dementia patients to be cared for — partly due to the lack of specialised staff in care homes and the impact they can have on residents.
"Some dementias can lead to previously pleasant and gentle people developing complex and challenging behaviours which are beyond the skills of nursing home staff and disruptive to other residents."
Pictured: When they were open at Rosewood House, Oak provided 19 beds and Maple provided 18 beds.
This creates a "vicious circle" whereby care homes seek to send "highly challenging people" back to the assessment ward at Clinique Pinel.
"However Beech Ward is full, and so those waiting [for assessment] in the General Hospital or at home cannot get a bed in a care home," Ms Winchester explained.
In January, Mental Health Director Andy Weir revealed that half the beds in the dementia assessment unit had been taken by those who should no longer be in hospital due to a lack of beds elsewhere.
Pictured: Mental Health Director Andy Weir.
This situation has left many advanced patients stranded in hospital settings, while new patients cannot be assessed due to overcrowding at Beech Ward.
"It also means that people are 'homeless'," the CEO of My Voice added.
"They are not living in a homely environment that can be personalised for them. They are living in a clean but stark clinical environment."
She said she was aware of a case where a patient had been stuck on what was supposed to have been a short-term assessment ward for more than three years.
Living in hospital settings also impacts patients' independence and mobility.
"Living on a small ward for months, they no longer have that daily walk, make a sandwich or pour themselves a drink, and they lose autonomy as others are making decisions for and about them whilst they live within the ward's unwritten 'rules'."
Pictured: Ms Winchester said the government needs to re-open specialist wards and improve patient care and spoke about the current strain on patients, families, caregivers, and the healthcare system.
But the situation doesn't only impact patients — it is also having a knock-on effect on families, hospital staff, and the wider healthcare system.
Ms Winchester said: "Staff become frustrated care staff, rather than using their own specialist skills in say orthopaedics or medicine.
"In some cases, these patients may require close 1:1 support to ensure they don't fall out of bed and don't display behaviours distressing to other ill patients.
"The cost of this intense support is huge."
Ms Winchester emphasised the urgent need for a cohesive plan and funding to manage the growing impact of dementia on the island and improve care options for patients and carers.
"Dementia can happen to any of us and surely, we want to be considered and treated as individuals, not objects?" she said.
"Dementia will not go away anytime soon. We need to implement sensible practical plans now."
Pictured: Health Minister Tom Binet.
Ms Winchester said: "The point of the strategy was to identify what is being done well, analyse where the gaps lie and produce a plan to efficiently and co-operatively deliver the range of services required.
"And the funding for the strategy was to ensure services are joined up and ready for the problems which lie ahead, not just wait for them to hit."
Claudine Snape, CEO of Dementia Jersey, told Express the news of the lack of funding had left her with deep concerns.
She said: "I'm stunned the requested funding for the dementia strategy was turned down given how widespread, expensive and distressing current problems are.
"We urgently need a budget for training and more respite options for carers now."
Pictured: Claudine Snape, CEO of Dementia Jersey.
Ms Snape added: "It's also vital we look to the future and scale up our plans bearing in mind dementia is the fastest-growing disease on the island and is set to become the most expensive in the UK by 2030.
"To proceed with no funding to support the dementia strategy feels incredibly short-sighted and is devastating news for people with dementia and their carers who urgently need change.
"There is an unacceptable number of people with dementia stuck in hospital for long periods of time, a lack of capacity from care agencies and residential homes to cater for people with dementia and poor understanding of the condition by many professional staff."
The Health Minister has pledged that a five-pronged Dementia Strategy will be publicly launched and published in June, based on the principles of raising awareness, diagnosing well, supporting people with dementia and their families, supporting the workforce, and supporting Jersey to become a dementia-friendly community.
In response to questioning from Deputy Louise Doublet last week, the Minister said he was developing an "initial implementation plan" with representatives from Dementia Jersey, as well as people with experience of living and dealing with dementia.
"This is on track for completion by the end of May and will set out the implementation plans for the next year relating to each of strategic objectives. This will be published this alongside the Strategy, so that the public are clear on the actions that will be taken in the initial period of implementation," said Deputy Binet.
The implementation plan will identify "where there is a requirement for additional funding, and what can be delivered with current resources", he added.
Dementia is a collective term used to describe the symptoms of many disorders that affect the brain and is not one specific disease. Because there are so many causes of dementia which affect people differently, and which change over time, no two people will experience dementia in the same way.
According to the recently released Jersey Health Profile, the average age of someone suffering with dementia is 84. Of those recorded with the condition in Jersey and the UK, 63% are female and 37% male.
Although the risk of dementia increases with age, younger people in their 30s – 60s can also have dementia. The term ‘younger onset dementia’ is used for any form of dementia under the age of 65.
Anyone can get dementia but the likelihood of having dementia increases with age. It is also influenced by health and lifestyle, and for a very small number of people diagnosed, genes may be a cause.
Dementia occurs when nerve cells in the brain are damaged. These cells carry messages between different parts of the brain and to other parts of the body and as more nerve cells are damaged the brain becomes less able to work properly.
Types of dementia include Alzheimer’s Disease, Vascular Dementia, Lewy Body Disease and Alcohol-related Dementia.
FOCUS: Charities "shocked" by lack of funding for mental health strategies
Decade-long wait for Jersey dementia strategy coming to an end
INSIGHT: Dementia and us... Why Jersey needs a strategy
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.