Long Term Care Commission Report

Long Term Care Commission Report

The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (“the College”) is welcoming the publication of the Long Term Care Commission Report. The Commission is coordinated by Alzheimer Scotland and chaired by Henry McLeish, a former First Minister of Scotland. Professor Andrew Elder, President of the College, and a geriatrician, is one of the Commission Members.

The Long Term Care Commission Report makes 16 key recommendations designed to safeguard and redefine the future of long term care in Scotland. It describes a fragmented residential care system at risk of collapse which is failing to meet the diverse long term care needs of people with dementia.

Speaking today Professor Elder said:

This is an important, comprehensive and timely report that identifies the severe challenges facing the long term care sector in Scotland and seeks to address them.

The College has, for some time, been highlighting concerns about the residential care home sector and the pressures it is under as we see care homes continuing to close. We fully support human rights being at the centre of how we look after those living with dementia, so that their needs and choices are always prioritised, and therefore support the development of better and more fairly funded domiciliary care services.

However, with the number of people aged over 65 with dementia in Scotland predicted to increase by 50% over the next 20 years, it is clear that we will also require additional care home capacity for the growing number of older people with dementia who are unable to remain in their own homes.

The report is also entirely correct to recommend that health and social care should work much more closely and strategically on these significant challenges to achieve better results.

We urge the Scottish Government to consider this report carefully and to take forward the recommendations, which we believe could both help support people with dementia and their families, and help us to prepare the infrastructure required as our population continues to grow older.