Never alone with dementia

Challenge

In Denmark, up to 90,000 people live with dementia and 300 – 400,000 people are relatives. Dementia costs society at least DKK 24 billion a year.

Task

The alliance was established in 2014 by NEXTSTEP together with Ældre Sagen, FOA, PenSam, the Danish Nursing Council and the Occupational Therapists Association.

The Dementia Alliance works both politically and practically to make Denmark dementia friendly. A country where neither citizens with dementia, relatives nor staff experience themselves alone with dementia.

Results

The Dementia Alliance has rallied large parts of the "dementia industry" around shared messages. The Alliance has also contributed to the Official National Dementia Action Plan, which was adopted politically in December 2016. It was subsequently launched at a symposium at Christiansborg in January 2017. The Dementia Action Plan has 23 initiatives and set aside DKK 470 million to make the plan.

In 2019, the Dementia Alliance launched for the first time a political Dementia Summit, attended by 15 municipalities. And locally, 33 municipalities have now lifted their dementia efforts through the alliance's National Dementia Area, a targeted camp course for municipalities that want to work purposefully with their dementia efforts.

Specifically, a number of concepts have been developed which make Denmark more dementia friendly every day. Among other things, a dementia manual, a housing and caregiver guide and a number of concrete concepts in relation to transport, interior design and training of staff.