Millions to be saved by tackling dementia

In the United Kingdom (UK), Alzheimer’s Society says tackling dementia care can help the Government achieve the efficiency gains it needs in its overall budget.

The government has said it must make £20billion of National Health Service (NHS) savings by 2014, the same as the annual cost of dementia to the UK.

In a report on public expenditure, the Health Select Committee has warned that the government has no “credible plan” to make NHS savings and said it was concerned that health and social care budgets would be squeezed. People with dementia occupy up to a quarter of all hospital beds and are amongst the biggest users of social care.

Alzheimer’s Society UK said that “If the government wants to provide good care and stop wasting money it needs to change the way it cares for people with dementia. Dementia costs £20 billion a year, more than heart disease stroke and cancer combined.

“As the number of people with dementia doubles in a generation and costs triple, effective spending on dementia will pay a huge part in helping health and social services manage big cuts.”

Text and email alerts welcomed by older patients in the UK
Text and email alerts could help older patients remember appointments and medication instructions, ultimately reducing NHS costs and potentially improving their own recovery in the United Kingdom (UK).

This is one of the findings from post-graduate researcher, Lyndsay Hughes, from the University of Hertfordshire whose study investigated ownership and use of email and mobile phone technologies in a sample of 112 patients with rheumatoid arthritis who were attending NHS clinics.

From this sample 73% of older patients had an email address and 93% owned a mobile phone. Those in the eldest category (over 65) also reported a high use of mobile phones with more than 63% stating they were “confident” at reading texts.

Almost half of those who had an email address or mobile phone said that they would like an email/text reminder for appointments. A quarter of patients who had access to these technologies said they would like an email/text medication reminder.

The research explained: “This shows that older patients with rheumatoid arthritis access emails and texts regularly and would like text or email reminders for appointments and medication use.

“Even in the oldest age category of over 65’s email and text reminders may be a useful means of increasing clinic attendance and medication adherence. As low attendance and adherence is associated with disease progression, these outcomes will not only improve patients health they could reduce NHS Costs.”