The new Dementia Strategy has been built entirely around the lived experiences of people who live with dementia, their families and carers, alongside professional advice and guidance from health and social care partners.

A Suffolk County Council spokesperson said: 'We want to create a society without stigma, where people with dementia feel safe in the knowledge that responsive services are based on an understanding of their needs and empowered to access information, advice, guidance, and support which is readily available whenever they or their families need it.'

The strategy looks to tackle a lack of education and awareness head on by focusing resources across the health and social care system onto five distinct areas:

·         Preventing Well - which involves ensuring people have an improved awareness of dementia, with better pre-diagnosis information, advice and support

·         Diagnosing Well - which helps people gain an earlier diagnosis of dementia

·         Supporting Well - which looks to improve the experience for people with dementia in a range of social care and hospital settings

·         Living Well - which looks to ensure that people with dementia receive person centred care and support which is flexible to their needs

 

·         Dying Well - which will ensure people, their families and carers are better prepared for their end of life and what options are available.

Richard Watson deputy chief executive and director of strategy and transformation for the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, said: 'Receiving a diagnosis of dementia can present many challenges to individuals, their families and loved ones. In Suffolk we want people to feel confident in seeking advice and support in a way that is meaningful for them.

'This strategy will help us identify our priorities across the county, and by working together with our partners we aim to enable people of all ages with dementia to feel valued and live as independently as possible in their communities without stigma, and to achieve the best possible outcomes for them and those who live with and care for them.'