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There is an urgent need for more caregivers for dementia patients
Physicians have warned for some time that there will be more cases of dementia in Germany. Due to the rapidly increasing number of people with dementia, there is a shortage of care. There is a lack of qualified nursing staff to treat and care for the patients.
The experts of the German Alzheimer's Association warn against the fact that more and more people are suffering from dementia and that more and more nurses are needed due to the increasing number of people affected. At the moment, there are simply not enough staff available and already initiated far-reaching care reforms have not brought about any improvement, the scientists warn in a recent press release.
More and more people in Germany are suffering from dementia. This also leads to a lack of trained nursing staff. (Photo: Halfpoint / fotolia.com) In Germany, about 1.6 million people suffer from dementia
The latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office show that the number of people with Alzheimer's in clinics has almost doubled over the past 15 years. The experts of Alzheimer's Society estimate that there are around 1.6 million people living with dementia in Germany today.
How does Alzheimer's affect sufferers?
About two-thirds of those affected suffer from Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia. Such a disease affects the brain and leads to a loss of mental functions. These include, for example, the thinking, language, orientation and judgment of those affected. In addition, important cells die in the human brain (especially in the so-called cerebral cortex) or they are at least severely damaged.
There is a lack of trained nursing staff
When older people are mentally ill or have dementia, effective treatment and care is very important. In Germany, however, most of these people are unfortunately not sufficiently supplied. For this reason, many options remain unused, which could lead to improved treatment of people with dementia in all stages of the disease, say the scientists. Also in nursing homes there is a lack of specially trained staff for the care of patients with dementia, say the doctors. More staff could help to avoid measures such as deprivation of liberty or the use of psychotropic drugs, say the experts.
Dementia is a very diverse disease
The annual World Alzheimer's Day in 2017 has the motto "Dementia - The diversity in view". This description is intended to help people understand that dementia has many different faces and is a very diverse disease. People often get dementia only when they are older. However, there are also cases in which the disease occurs earlier in life, while those affected are still working normally.
The quality of life of dementia patients must be improved
"We want people with dementia to be able to lead a good life regardless of their clinical picture and background," says Monika Kaus, chair of the German Alzheimer's Association. People and their relatives are different and life situations are diverse. Therefore, individual, good offers and structures would be needed, and "we must also adapt to certain groups of people, such as People who have a migration background, "explains the expert.
Multilingual website for migrants on dementia
The Alzheimer's Society will provide a website in the next few days, which is specifically geared to migrants. The site informs people about special offers for people with dementia in Turkish, Russian and Polish.
Dementia can not be cured
A disease of dementia is not curable so far. However, it is possible to slow down the deterioration of mental capacity with time by early treatment with drugs and behavioral therapies. This will at least delay the onset of the disease. "The most important achievement of clinical Alzheimer's research in recent years is that Alzheimer's Disease can be diagnosed today at the stage of mild cognitive impairment, well before mental abilities are severely limited and dementia is present," Dr. Oliver Peters of the brain league (e.V.) in the current press release.
More innovative research needed
"For the prevention of Alzheimer's disease and the right way to deal with dementia, there is a need for more innovative research," explains David Sieveking, the new patron of the Hirnliga e. V. - Association of German Alzheimer's researchers. Rather than waiting desperately for the big league of the pharmaceutical industry, it would be more important to promote creative research outside the commercial realm, because that would allow the genuinely new ideas and research that we need to thrive to be, adds Sieveking.
New therapeutic approaches to slow the progression of the disease need to be developed
"With significant advances in early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, it is now possible to let new therapeutic approaches that slow disease progression start much earlier than it was possible in the past," explains Dr. Oliver Peters. Such an earlier treatment was necessary because any measures to stop the disease at the stage of dementia were unsuccessful. A so-called proof of efficacy must not yet be completed investigations, adds the physician.
More and more men are affected by Alzheimer's
In 2015 alone, 19,049 Alzheimer's patients were hospitalized. This was much more than in 2001, when 10,306 cases were recorded. Overall, the numbers corresponded to an increase of 85 percent. It was also clear that the number of men with Alzheimer's disease increased significantly faster than the number of women affected. Among the male victims, an increase of 126 percent was observed, in women it was about 65 percent. (As)