A SEVEN-day NHS, and helping people live well with the dementia, will help make UK the most dementia friendly society in the world by 2020, the Health Secretary and MP for South West Surrey Jeremy Hunt has said.

According to Mr Hunt, the Government’s new dementia implementation plan will empower people with dementia and their family through improved care and transparency.

As part of the government’s aim of building a higher-quality NHS for patients, with safer care throughout the week, the dementia implementation plan will make sure:

• For the first time, people with dementia and their families will benefit from greater transparency and will be able to compare the quality of dementia care in their local area.

• The Care Quality Commission will include standards of dementia care in their inspections to make sure services are safer for people with dementia seven days a week.

• Every person with dementia will receive a personalised care plan.

As part of plans to raise awareness of health concerns, a new pilot scheme will also extend NHS Health Checks which, for the first time, will include awareness raising, education and discussion of risk reduction for dementia for people aged 40 or older. This is currently only available for over 65s.

Mr Hunt also believes the rollout of seven-day services across the NHS will benefit dementia patients as it will help make sure they don’t stay in hospital longer than necessary. Currently, consultant hospital ward rounds vary across the week and around the country.

Under new plans:

• All patients in high dependency care will be seen and reviewed by a consultant twice a day, every day of the week by 2020.

• If clinically appropriate, all patients, including those with dementia, will be reviewed by a consultant ward round once a day, every day of the week by 2020.

Mr Hunt said: “A dementia diagnosis can bring fear and heartache, but I want Britain to be the best place in the world to live well with dementia. Last Parliament we made massive strides on diagnosis rates and research – the global race is now on to find a cure for dementia and I want the UK to win it.

“This Parliament I want us to make big progress on the quality of care and treatment. Hospitals can be frightening and confusing places for people with dementia, so our new plan will guarantee them safer seven-day hospital care, as well as tackling unacceptable variations in quality across England through transparent Ofsted style ratings.”

The Health Secretary added the dementia implementation plan builds on national success including raising dementia diagnosis rates to their highest levels, doubling dementia research funding and getting more than one million people to become dementia friends.

In addition, leaders across the health, social care, local government and voluntary sector organisations have signed a joint declaration committing to improving care and support to people with dementia following diagnosis.

Commenting on the declaration, Health Minister Jane Ellison said: “Dementia touches so many families but the quality of care people get after a diagnosis of dementia can vary across the country and this has to change. The Implementation Plan will tackle this head on and we will be working hard to make sure people with dementia, their families and carers get better support.”

“The government has invested £150m to develop a national Dementia Research Institute to drive forward new treatments and help fulfil our goal to find a cure by 2025. This will be supported by our new aim for 10 per cent of all people diagnosed with dementia to take part in research.”