Mum has dementia and now Dad’s dead she will have to sell her home. Why? | Anne Penketh

Britain operates a cruel health lottery that discriminates against dementia patients. Struggling families need social care

When my father died suddenly in January at the age of 91, family and friends gave him a great send-off. We had a private cremation, an uplifting memorial service at church, and rounded off the day with a buffet at the golf club. The next day, Mum couldn’t remember anything about it. She kept asking whether Dad had died, how he had died, and obsessed about having to organise the funeral.

About 10 years ago Mum was diagnosed with dementia, the creeping and cruel illness that has stolen her short-term memory although not – yet – her vibrant personality. Thanks to round-the-clock care by my father, her memory problems worsened only gradually until his death. But in grief, her confusion has deepened significantly.

Related: Shops, cafes and round-the-clock care: life in a ‘dementia village’

Related: 'The spark will ignite': how poetry helps engage people with dementia

Continue reading... April 09, 2018 at 02:30PM