The Impact of Policies on Alzheimer's Disease Care in the UK

This report analyzes the influence of current policies, theories, and politics on health and social care for individuals with Alzheimer's disease in the UK. It begins with an introduction to the disease, defining its impact on memory, behavior, and cognitive function. The report then delves into the current policies, including the National Alzheimer's Strategy, the Care Standard Act, and the National Service Frameworks, evaluating their impact on service users. It also explores relevant health theories, such as the health belief model, and how they shape care approaches. The discussion covers the challenges faced by Alzheimer's patients, such as access to appropriate housing and care services, and the role of government and healthcare practitioners in addressing these issues. The report concludes by summarizing the key findings and emphasizing the importance of policies and political factors in improving the quality of life for those affected by Alzheimer's disease. It also references academic sources to support its claims.

Alzheimer
In The
UK

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
Discuss how current policies, theories and politics have influenced this group’s health and
social care....................................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
The Alzheimer's disease is define as the degenerate of brain cells which leads to various
cause of issue in memory, behaviour and thinking. This disease decreases the ability of a person's
ability to perform function properly. It is most common disease that occur majorly in older age
of people (Mullard, 2016). This cause various disability such as remembering new information,
poor complex tasking, problem in speaking, writing and recognizing faces. This disease develop
change in behaviour and personality in an individual. In this assignment, the influence of current
policies, theories and politics on service user group are cover.
TASK 1
Discuss how current policies, theories and politics have influenced this group’s health and social
care.
The Alzheimer's disease result in various cause in which person's lose ability in attaining
new information and disability in recognizing people. This disease occur as a mild in early stage
(Aderghal, 2018). Although, there is no cure present for this disease but there are some
treatments which help in minimizing the effect of this disease. This help in improving the quality
of life of age group of people. The intake of smoking, diabetes, drinking and deficiency of
physical activity can cause of Alzheimer's disease in later stage of life. The health and social care
practitioner assist people to reduce these risk factors so that chances of developing this disease
can be prevented including other disease. It occur highly in old age people but can also effect
earlier age of people.
There are approx 8,50,000 people are present in UK who are infected from this disease.
There are different issues are developed among older age of people by policies and politics. As
proper information about services are not relatively transferred to old people (Giebel, Sutcliffe
and Challis, 2015). There are some current issues are develop in this age group such as there are
various nursing homes who are not accepting old age of people as they can cause harm to
themselves and others. Due to their memory loss, the patients forget about information and
people that are surrounding to them. There are some policies of government which does not
consider them in their care services.
 There are various current policies which are introduce to improve the services that are
provided to Alzheimer's disease patients. Their framework establish to provide a long
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term plan so that care can be implemented in services. They focuses on key factors that
impacted on people's life. These are also some challenges which are faced by old age
people in their care. The old age people need support when they are suffering from
Alzheimer's disease and they deserve to perceive appropriate care by professionals.
There are some inappropriate medical facilities that are provided by health and social
care which arise issue among old age people in their care.
 The people with Alzheimer's disease have right to acquire all their needs so that they can
live for longer. This highly occur in old age people due to their loss of memory. So some
policies are conduct in which they are provided appropriate housing care (Harris and
White, 2018).
 There are various Alzheimer service programmes which are design to improve the
quality of care to Alzheimer's disease patients (McAleese, 2017). This program support
some strategies in care services regarding Alzheimer's disease. This includes to increase
awareness and information about disease so that prevention can be taken. They conduct
some training programmes from which they can support service users. This will benefit
older age of people who have Alzheimer's disease as they feel support towards their
disease.
There are health theories which influence quality life of people in their health and social
care. The health belief model can help in preventing issue from which older age of people are not
able to adapt prevention. It refers to the belief or desire of an individual to take some course of
action which help them in achieving benefits. The stages of this model is described below.
 Perceived susceptibility:- this step describe as the sense of a person concept in attaining a
disease. This depends on person's feeling and exposure to disease. In this, the older age of
people have feeling of attaining risk factors of Alzheimer's disease are those who highly
have this disease (Sinyavskaya, 2018).
 Perceived severity:- in this, there are some probability of a person to change their
behaviours towards their health condition. The old people start evaluating consequences
of their disease.
 Perceived benefits:- the people only convince if they have some benefits from their
actions which are occur to reduce their health condition. This rely on analysing both
susceptibility and benefits so that a individual can take health action as a benefit. This
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step help in identifying the benefit for old age people so that they can take effective steps
towards their health.
 Perceived barriers:- there are various barriers occur at time of taking action in health.
This barrier arise from both physical and social factors. The changing behaviour can
cause various other factors that influence people from which they are not able to take
action. There are some barriers occur among old age people from which they are not able
to change their behaviour (Love and Miners, 2015).
 Cue to action:- there are some external events that can influence a person to take effective
changes in their health. This refers to influence of change that trigger decision in taking
action to make change. These external factors influence old people to take effective
decision in their disease.
 Self-efficacy:- it defines as the behaviour of an individual that come up with people
changed behaviour that successfully occur. The health benefits are successfully changed
in quality of life of old people.
This health model help in influencing health and social care services in their care action
plan. This also help in developing effective care plan according to perspective of people from
which care can be support.
The government of UK has developed standard to ensure about diagnosis for disease including
other health conditions. There are different policies that are published by government in order to
support people who have dementia (Kim, 2018). These policies are described below.
 The national Alzheimer strategy:- this policy was first published by 2009 as this policy
work on three principles as to improve quality life of people who are suffering from
Alzheimer's disease. This includes to increase awareness about dementia so that their aim
of reducing the impact of disease that are surrounding in environment can achieved. Their
aim is to improve cost of treatments so each individual with this disease can attain proper
diagnosis. This policy work on to raise the number of services for individuals with
Alzheimer's disease.
 The care standard act:- this act create national care standard commission in which they
regulate their care by ensuring that older people with this disease can meet all standard
care in their care home. They act to promote quality, services and welfare of old age
people.
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 The national service frameworks:- this service was established to improve services by
maintaining quality standard of care. They develop wide range of method through
practitioner and groups in order to care old age people. They have set some quality
standard in all health and social care services (Heilmann, 2015). They consider important
condition that are needed in health care services.
 The challenge on Alzheimer 2020:- this act centre on providing awareness among public
so that care of disease can be promoted. They also enhancing some research from which
they influence condition of Alzheimer's disease in UK. Their aim is to improve quality of
care for old age people with Alzheimer's disease. In their strategies, they promote all staff
and care practitioner to take effective training so that they can take effective step in
treating with Alzheimer's disease in their health care settings (Small and Petsko, 2015).
They also have strategies to implement Alzheimer institute so that risk of this disease can
be promoted by providing information about disease.
 Alzheimer friendly communities:- this communities are developed by government from
which they can identify the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. They encouraging people
to become Alzheimer friendly or to contact more with old age of group of people.
There are range of services that help old age people in their care. As it is unable to deliver
effective care at home. So the government implemented various care home in which appropriate
care and information are provided to them. This care services home are establish by government
so that high quality of care can be provided to old age people.
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CONCLUSION
from the above assignment, it has been concluded that there are various policies occur
which help in influencing health care services to Alzheimer's disease patients. This also includes
some theories which assist in identifying perception of individual in their health. The politics
also influence older age people when they have Alzheimer's disease regarding their care services.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Aderghal, K., and et. al., 2018, June. Classification of Alzheimer disease on imaging modalities
with deep CNNs using cross-modal transfer learning. In 2018 IEEE 31st International
Symposium on Computer-Based Medical Systems (CBMS) (pp. 345-350). IEEE.
Giebel, C.M., Sutcliffe, C. and Challis, D., 2015. Activities of daily living and quality of life
across different stages of dementia: a UK study. Aging & Mental Health. 19(1). pp.63-
71.
Harris, J. and White, V., 2018. A dictionary of social work and social care. Oxford University
Press.
Heilmann, S., and et. al., 2015. PLD3 in non-familial Alzheimer's disease. Nature. 520(7545).
pp.E3-E5.
Kim, H., and et. al., 2018. A shape-code nanoplasmonic biosensor for multiplex detection of
Alzheimer's disease biomarkers. Biosensors and Bioelectronics. 101. pp.96-102.
Love, S. and Miners, J.S., 2015. White matter hypoperfusion and damage in dementia: post‐
mortem assessment. Brain pathology. 25(1). pp.99-107.
McAleese, K.E., and et. al., 2017. TDP‐43 pathology in Alzheimer's disease, dementia with
Lewy bodies and ageing. Brain pathology. 27(4). pp.472-479.
Mullard, A., 2016. Alzheimer amyloid hypothesis lives on.
Sinyavskaya, L.,and et. al ., 2018. Comparative effect of statins on the risk of incident Alzheimer
disease. Neurology. 90(3). pp.e179-e187.
Small, S.A. and Petsko, G.A., 2015. Retromer in Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease and other
neurological disorders. Nature Reviews Neuroscience. 16(3). pp.126-132.
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