Charity calls for mandatory dementia training for all care home staff

The charity is calling for mandatory dementia training for all care staff, with an end to the idea of the traditional 'old folks' home. The report comes at the start of a major campaign to improve the quality of life of almost a quarter of a million people living with dementia in residential care.

The Alzheimer's Society's Home From Home report calls for care homes to begin operating as specialist dementia care providers. Research shows a typical person with dementia in a care home spends just two minutes in every six hours socially interacting with other people - most of these residents are in the advanced stages of dementia and rely on the support of trained staff.

The Home From Home report features a survey of more than 3,500 people, including relatives of people with dementia, care home staff and managers. The survey shows;

• More than half of people with a relative in residential care say there is not enough for the person with dementia to do each day
• Over one in four family carers feel they do not receive enough information about the care and treatment of the person they care for
• Care home staff say providing care that improves the quality of life of residents with dementia is the top factor in job satisfaction

Neil Hunt, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Society, says,

'Hundreds of thousands of people with dementia are living in residential care and yet the majority of staff do not have adequate training. We hear the horror stories, but also the hope among people with dementia and their carers about the difference good dementia care can make.

Care homes must operate as specialist care providers with dementia training a mandatory requirement for all staff. Dementia training ensures care staff understand the reality of the condition as well as the positive impact they can have on people living with a diagnosis and their carers.'

Connie Harris, from Essex, cares for her partner Lionel. She says,

'Lionel has lived in two different care homes since he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. He left one after two weeks because staff failed to make the simplest checks on his personal care. Where he is now the staff see Lionel as a person and have the skills to support his medical needs. There is no comparison between them and the huge effect good dementia care has had on both on our lives.'

Read the report

• Download the full Home from Home report
• Download the executive summary of the Home from Home report