Coronavirus (COVID-19) - dementia and COVID-19: national action plan - easy read

Commitments

Commitment number 1.

The Scottish Government will keep in contact with the people who helped to make the commitments.

These people will help the Scottish Government to check how well the commitments are working.

The plans will be checked after 6 months and again after 1 year.

A group will be made up to look at how the plan has worked across Scotland.

This group will be made of people from local councils, NHS, Health and Social Care Partnerships, the third sector and interested parties, and importantly, people living with dementia, their carers and families.

Commitment number 2.

The Scottish Government will work with others to find out how the Coronavirus Pandemic has been for people with dementia and their families.

There will be a report that will look at how people with dementia have had their human rights looked after.

The report will look at if people with dementia were able to make choices about what they did during the pandemic.

Commitment number 3.

The Scottish Government will do an Equalities Impact assessment on this plan.

An Equalities Impact assessment is when people make sure that a plan is fair for everyone.

They will think about how the plan will work for different groups of people.

Commitment number 4.

The Scottish Government will work with others to make sure that people who have been told they have dementia get the support they need.

People with dementia need to get support in their community to help them to live a good life.

Commitment number 5.

The Scottish Government want to make sure that people can find out when they have dementia.

People need to know they have dementia before they are able to get the support and help they need.

Commitment number 6.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will make sure that people with dementia are given support to live safe and well in their own home.

This support should help to stop people from going into hospital.

The Inverclyde area has been testing a new way to do things.

The things that were learned in Inverclyde will be shared with other places in Scotland.

Commitment number 7.

The Scottish Government will ensure that older people's mental health is looked after.

This means giving support to people with dementia and their carers.

This help will be there to help with issues caused by COVID-19, such as dealing with the death of someone or depression.

Commitment number 8.

The Scottish Government will work with local health and social care partnerships and health professionals.

They will work together to make sure that the things written in two other plans happen.

The first of these plans is called The Framework for Supporting People through Recovery and Rehabilitation.

You can read it if you click here

Or go to the website https://www.gov.scot/publications/framework-supporting-people-through-recovery-rehabilitation-during-covid-19-pandemic/

This plan says how people should be supported to keep doing things.

The other plan that is talked about in this commitment is called Connecting People, Connecting Support

You can read it if you click here

Or go to the website https://www.alzscot.org/ahpsanddementia

This plan is about how to make sure that people with dementia are connected to others so they can live independently for as long as possible.

Commitment number 9.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will keep looking at the COVID-19 situation and think about if it is safe to open day services for people with dementia.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will encourage people with dementia to get self-directed support.

This will enable people with dementia to have choice and control over what support they get and who gives them that support.

Commitment number 10.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will work to help people to get technology that helps them to live independently.

Commitment number 11.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will work with lots of other people to make local communities dementia friendly.

This means they will work together with the local council and the NHS as well as community groups and charities.

Making communities more aware of the needs of people with dementia will help people to be more welcome in the community.

Commitment number 12.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will make sure that carers of people with dementia will be able to get the support they need. Carers will have their legal rights protected.

The Scottish Government will work with other organisations to make sure carers know about the support they can get and how they can use it.

Commitment number 13.

Carers and families of people with dementia will be offered counselling support by Alzheimer Scotland.

This is important because of the additional pressure families have faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This counselling will be given at the same time as mental health support from the National Health Service.

Commitment number 14.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will work with care homes to make sure that the rights of people with dementia are protected during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and partners will work with care homes to make sure people with dementia receive the treatment they need during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This will be done through a group called the Dementia in Care Homes Working Group.

Commitment number 15.

The Scottish Government will do research on why so many people with dementia died during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The research will show how many people this was.

This research will help those who care for people with dementia to give better care and treatment to people with dementia who get COVID-19 in the future months.

Commitment number 16.

A study will be done which will look at how psychoactive medication, drugs which change people's behaviour, was used in care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

These drugs do not treat dementia and should not be given to people who are not mentally ill.

This study will be done with the help of The Care Inspectorate.

The Care Inspectorate is an organisation which makes sure the rights of people in care are protected in Scotland.

Commitment number 17.

The Scottish Government will keep funding the National Dementia Nurse Consultant Programme and the Dementia Champions programme.

The National Dementia Nurse Consultant Programme gives advice about how to give the best care to people with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Dementia Champions Programme supports dementia care staff and teaches them new skills.

Commitment number 18.

The Scottish Government and others will keep supporting a guide which gives medical staff and carers advice on how to carry out the wishes of people with dementia who are very ill and their families.

This the COVID-19 Dementia Anticipatory Care Guide.

The Scottish Government, alongside Healthcare Improvement Scotland, will help people to use this guide.

Commitment number 19.

To make sure people with dementia get the best support from people who are skilled and knowledgeable The Scottish Government will continue to fund three programmes for workers.

These programmes are -

Promoting Excellence

Connecting People, Connecting Support

Focus on Dementia.

Commitment number 20.

The Scottish Government will introduce trauma training to people who support people living with dementia.

People will be trained on how to deal with very difficult events related to their job and the people they care for.

Commitment number 21.

The Scottish Government will keep funding Brain Health Scotland.

Brain Health Scotland is a charity that gives advice to help people make themselves less likely to get dementia.