The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, launched the “ Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission” on August 14th in memory of the late actress who suffered from Alzheimer’s, one of the leading causes of Dementia. She campaigned for change and raised funds for research.
Her husband Scott Mitchell spoke with Boris Johnson at Downing Street, who said, “Dame Barbara Windsor was a British hero…I am delighted that we can now honour Dame Barbara in such a fitting way, launching a new national dementia mission in her name.” They aim to invest £95 million of government funding into research and development and want to increase it to £160 million by 2024.
What it aims to Accomplish
The new mission calls for volunteers, with or without a history of dementia to come forward for clinical trial therapies nicknamed ‘Babs Army.’ It is predicted that one million people will be living with dementia by 2025 and 1.6 million by 2040. 40% of cases can be potentially preventable but the causes are still poorly understood.
Volunteers can register their interest through the Join Dementia website.
The mission will help find new ways to deliver earlier diagnosis and create enhanced treatments and maybe create a better quality of life for those suffering.
Researchers will look for signals of risk factors, which could help people who are at risk of developing dementia to understand how they might be able to slow or prevent the disease in the future.
Alzheimer’s Research UK
Hilary Evans, Chief Executive at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said:
“We’re delighted the Government has recommitted to doubling dementia research funding , and that our call for a Dementia Medicines Taskforce to speed up the development of new treatments has been heard…The upcoming 10-year dementia plan is a chance for the next Prime Minster to make sure this funding is met with ambitious action, and we look forward to working with the Government to turn it into a reality.”
Get Involved
We, at CareTutor, want to recognise the effort of Dame Barbara Windsor and other amazing people that dedicate their lives to Dementia Awareness. We acknowledge the importance of Dementia and the early diagnosis and support surrounding the condition.
CareTutor is a Social Care eLearning video-based training provider. We offer a range of eLearning courses for Dementia care; you can learn more about this here.
