Personal Care at Home Bill

I rise to speak to Amendment 33. I want to speak particularly about people suffering from dementia. There is quite a concern that many people with dementia will not meet the four ADLs or the critical criteria for an inability to carry out vital personal care or domestic routines, as described, despite having a substantial level of need. That is obvious when one thinks about the symptoms of dementia in its various forms. Your Lordships will recognise that one of the key reasons for this is that many people with dementia find that they can carry out some personal care routines with various degrees of difficulty, but only when they are prompted by care staff or carers. Providing personal care to someone with dementia is often very different from providing care for a frail older person, because the person with dementia can easily become confused and distressed and very often resists the essential care that he or she needs. Careful prompting and supervision play a critical role in the care of many such people. There are all sorts of things that they can do—they are very simple things when you are well—such as swallowing medication, chewing properly, preparing food for themselves, washing properly, and dealing with and maintaining continence, if they are carefully prompted by trained people. The amendment would ensure that dementia is recognised as the illness that it is. It is essential that it is inserted. I hope that the Government take it seriously, so that the supervision and prompting that are necessary can be provided.