Dementia Jersey held a virtual briefing (via Teams) for members of the States of Jersey government. The purpose was to create a burning platform for a dementia strategy in Jersey, to get support from politicians and government officials. Unfortunately, writes CEO Claudine Snape, Jersey finds itself behind most of Europe, when it comes to prioritising dementia. There has sadly been little political support for a dementia strategy in the face of speculation over the location and cost of a new hospital (GBP 800 million, equivalent to approximately EUR 950 million) and other local priorities.
The briefing was split into three short parts:
• an introduction from Claudine Snape about dementia
• a talk from Chris Roberts, Chairperson of the European Working Group of People with Dementia and his wife and supporter Jayne Goodrick, about their lived experience
• and a talk from the CEO of Family Nursing and Home Care (FNHC) about the different factors needed to ‘age well’, followed by a Q&A.
Ms Snape used the Jersey Government’s disease projections report and highlighted that with an ageing population on the island, dementia is forecast to be the fastest rising health condition in the over 65s within the next generation. "Chris and Jayne were inspirational speakers and showed how, with the right practical approaches and problem-solving mentality they overcame the barriers Chris’s dementia put in the way", said Ms Snape. She continued: "And Rosemarie from FNHC tied in dementia to a general ‘ageing well’ agenda which enabled us to call our briefing ‘Improving health outcomes for Jersey’s ageing popular, through the lens of Dementia’." 13 local politicians attended, including all but one of Jersey’s party leaders, which was an excellent result. Politicians who attended have been followed up with a request for support for the dementia strategy and wider initiatives to support Jersey’s ageing population. The Government has now committed to a dementia strategy and has invited Dementia Jersey to write it and the organisation is currently negotiating a partnership agreement to take this forward.
