Alzheimer Scotland is pleased to announce the establishment of its Commission on the future of long-term care. Alzheimer Scotland is committed to improving the quality and the variety of long-term care options for people with dementia and their families and carers and, as Scotland continues to recover from the effects of the pandemic and ongoing challenges in the delivery of health and social care services, we recognise that current options for the long-term care of people with dementia are not always designed to meet their complex and specific needs. We have taken steps to address this issue by establishing a Commission to consider alternative approaches to delivering more effective long-term care and support.
The Commission, led by former First Minister of Scotland and Alzheimer Scotland Ambassador, Henry McLeish, will consider what changes and improvements are needed in the current environment to address issues including ensuring the provision of high quality care and support, tackling health inequalities and upholding human rights for people living with dementia. The Commission will seek to identify innovative, cost-effective, and affordable solutions for achieving any recommended changes to the current model of provision and will consider alternative approaches to care and support that will meet the needs of those who need it, in a way that they want to access and receive it.
The Commission will convene a number of meetings over the coming year and will hear from a number of key stakeholders as it seeks to establish a set of national recommendations for Scottish Government and other stakeholders which set out a new, fairer, more person-centred and sustainable policy, practice, and funding model for the long-term care of older people and people with dementia in Scotland. This includes input from people with lived experience through a series of public engagement events that will ensure the Commission is informed about public expectations and views on long-term care. The Commission will report its findings in Spring/Summer 2024.
