People with known dementia using acute and general hospital inpatient services have their diagnosis of dementia recorded and shared along with access to liaison services that specialise in the management of dementia and older people’s mental health, when this is clinically indicated.

Your diagnosis of dementia will be recorded by the hospital when you are admitted and shared with these specialist services, even if you have not been admitted for a reason related to dementia.
 
For extra information, evidence and best practice please scroll down to the bottom of the page.

NICE Hospital Care: "At any one time 1 in 4 hospital beds are occupied by people living with dementia. People with dementia often experience longer hospital stays, delays in leaving hospital and reduced independent living. Hospital admission can trigger distress, confusion and delirium for someone with dementia. This can contribute to a decline in functioning and a reduced ability to return home to independent living."

NCCMH dementia care pathway full implementation: "Liaison mental health services can provide assessment and interventions for people with suspected or diagnosed dementia who are in a general hospital. Key functions of these services include:

• giving support and advice on assessment and diagnosis, including referral to memory assessment services
• giving support and advice on care planning, and managing the behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia and delirium
• working closely with other mental health services so that people who are seen in hospital and require ongoing assessment and treatment are followed up

Implementing The Five Year Foward View for Mental Health: "By 2020/21, all acute hospitals will have all-age mental health liaison teams in place, and at least 50% of these will meet the ‘Core 24’ service standard as a minimum. Specific expertise required for assessing and managing older adults include competences in: managing mental health problems that develop in later life, often with a different nature to those in younger people and requiring different treatment approaches (e.g. cognitive disorders, dementia, mood disorders, psychotic illnesses) working with older patients who have complex and interacting mental and physical comorbidities as well as frailty the potential adverse effects of drug treatments for physical illnesses in older adults multidisciplinary working with other services involved in the health and social care needs of older people (e.g. social services, residential care homes). Two-thirds of NHS beds are occupied by older people, of whom up to 60% have (or will develop) a mental disorder during admission”