Dementia survey shows Bexton is needed

8:30am Thursday 10th March 2011

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a NEW government pilot campaign has been launched in the north west aimed at increasing early diagnosis of dementia.

It encourages people to recognise the signs and symptoms of the condition and urges them to seek advice from their GP if they are worried.

Latest figures show that in Central and Eastern Cheshire – that covers Knutsford – there is an estimated 6,148 people with dementia and of those people approximately 3,571 remain undiagnosed and are missing out on access to the right treatment and support to help them live well.

But with the specialist dementia unit in Knutsford – Bexton Court – currently closed the potential sufferers will have no where local to attend for care.

in the north west, there is an estimated 82,661 people with dementia and of those people approximately 46,709 remain undiagnosed.

in Central and Eastern Cheshire the figure of people living with dementia is expected to rise to an estimated 8,7291 people in 2021.

Dr Mike Cheshire, medical director of NHS North West, added: “Research has shown that people don’t know enough about dementia to be able to help – recognising the signs and symptoms, talking about it and seeking advice are the crucial steps to receiving a diagnosis.

“For example if a loved one is struggling to remember recent events, but can easily recall things that happened in the past, this could be one of the signs of dementia.”

Laurie Burton, who is leading the campaign to reopen Bexton Court, said: “This campaign could possibly double the number of those diagnosed with dementia. Surely Cheshire East Council must now urgently re-open Bexton Court.

“They have created a north-south divide in their borough by closing the only specialist dementia care centre in the north, thereby compelling sufferers and their carers to travel to Crewe for essential respite care facilities.

“At the same time, they are telling people to arrange for their own transport, as the fleet of community transport mini-buses is to be reduced in size and charges for care services as well as transport are to be greatly increased.

“The council is even considering spending large amounts on a completely new building or buildings on the Community Hospital/Bexton Court site, despite the obvious need for a local dementia respite care centre to help both sufferers and their carers.

“As one of the early signs of dementia is ‘problems with thinking and reasoning’, it seems Cheshire East Council is a good place to start the campaign for early diagnosis.”

Talk about this on our website at knutsfordguardian.co.uk.

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