Early diagnosis

The South West Strategic Health Authority has a proposed ambition to increase diagnosis rates to 60% by March 2012.

Achieving this ambition requires:

establishing asnd improving access to specialist assessment services for people with a possible or suspected diagnosis of dementia, known as Memory Assessment Services
delivering General Practitioner education and training programmes in assessment and diagnosis

The priorities for January 2011 to March 2012 are:

to monitor the implementation of the Guidance on the Commissioning of Memory Assessment Services (December 2010) to ensure implementation in the 2011/12 commissioning round;
to continue to audit memory assessment activity, and diagnosis rates; provide quarterly data reports to Primary Care Trusts; and provide bespoke support to commissioners to ensure robust improvement plans are being delivered;
to develop and implement a peer review tool to monitor standards in memory services;
in order to improve information at general practice level, to publish information templates and examples of positive practice for local adaptation. This shall include the translation of standard information into languages of minority ethnic groups;
with deaneries, General Practitioner regional leads for dementia, and Primary Care Trust dementia leads, to implement sub-regional General Practitioner training programmes in assessment and diagnosis;
to commission and support locality-focused dementia leadership programmes to improve the commissioning and delivery of services for people with dementia and their families/carers;
to support the South West Regional Expert Reference Group and Practice Development Network for Memory Services, in order to continue to drive quality and productivity.