World Alzheimer’s Month – Negligence Claims

World Alzheimer’s Month is a global opportunity to raise awareness around dementia. The theme for World Alzheimer’s Month this September is ‘Never too early, never too late’. The campaign aims to underline the crucial role of identifying risk factors and ensuring proactive risk decline measures daily to help stop the onset of dementia.

As part of World Alzheimer’s Month, World Alzheimer’s Day is due to take place on 21 September.

What is Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia that affects memory, thinking, and behaviour. It accounts for roughly 60 to 80% of dementia cases.

The condition is a progressive disease, with dementia symptoms gradually worsening over time. At the onset of the disease, memory loss is typically minor but once the condition has significantly progressed (late-stage Alzheimer’s), individuals are generally unable to carry out a conversation and fully comprehend their environment.

An individual with Alzheimer’s will typically live for four to eight years after being diagnosed. However, people have been known to live as long as 20 years.

Early detection

The early detection of Alzheimer’s can help individuals to prolong their quality of life. People with the condition often don’t recognise any changes to their cognitive functioning, so medical practitioners are typically needed to recognise symptoms of the disease during an examination.

Regardless of whether a person has raised concerns, it is the responsibility of the examining medical practitioner to investigate any possible underlying causes of changes in memory retention or functioning, and any other signs of dementia.

Misdiagnosis

Medical misdiagnosis involving Alzheimer’s is very common. However, there is no current medical test that confirms that a person has the condition. Other conditions with the same symptoms as Alzheimer’s, for example, Parkinson’s disease, could mistakenly be diagnosed, or vice versa.

Once a person has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, they will eventually require round-the-clock care. This is usually provided at specialist memory care facilities, group homes, and nursing homes. A condition that is quite common for those with Alzheimer’s is Sundowners’ syndrome which is when a person loses their sense of time and could consequently roam at night, as they do not realise the time of day. It can be exhausting for family members to care for loved ones at home, so they resort to long-term care facilities to house and protect their loved ones from themselves and others who might harm them.

Nursing home negligence

Patients in care facilities require attentive and patient caretakers. These caretakers become tired and overwhelmed whilst caring for many patients and this could lead to them rushing patients who are already confused and unable to.

If your loved one has signs of physical abuse or neglect, such as cuts, bruises, or bedsores, they could be a victim of nursing home negligence. Additionally, patients with Alzheimer’s who are left unattended could roam, fall, or injure themselves, or other individuals with the condition when they become combative, another common symptom of Alzheimer’s.

How to get involved?

There are several ways you can get involved with World Alzheimer’s Day: