Post Office Undercover

My Family and Alzheimer’s

Inside Britain’s Israel Lobby

undercover debt collector

mum, dad, alzheimers and me

how to rob a bank

undercover mosque: the return

banatyne takes on big tobacco

iraq's lost generation

afghanistan: lifting the veil

undercover mother

afghanistan unveiled

charles: the meddling prince

undercover mosque

monkeys, rats and me: animal testing

burma's secret war

britain's rubbish

undercover in the secret state

gypsy wars

re-opening the post

undercover with new labour

my friend the mercenary

touts on tour

profiting from kids in care

third class post

the best for my child

islam unveiled

iran undercover

the child sex trade

blood and revenge

truth and lies in baghdad

lifting the veil: zarmina's story

secrets of the saudi state

down the tube

unholy war

beneath the veil

looking for ricky

party crashers

bloody foreigners

children of the secret state

prime suspects & witness to murder

MUM, DAD, ALZHEIMER'S AND ME

Fiona Phillips investigates the care of Alzheimer sufferers in the UK in a special Dispatches film to be broadcast in January.

The number of people suffering from dementia, the majority with Alzheimer's, is projected to rise from 700,000 to over 1 million by 2025 and 1.7 million by 2051.

Unpaid carers are saving the government just over 6 billion pounds a year. The burden of caring for a spouse or family member is a draining experience. A YouGov survey of carers carried out for Dispatches revealed that fewer than half of carers surveyed received help from Social Services or got respite care and 20% of carers said they sometimes or often feel threatened by the person they're looking after.

 

 

 

 

Fiona investigates whether the level of financial support for sufferers, and respite care for those looking after them, is adequate. And with numbers set to increase, is the Government prepared to cope?

Fiona's father has been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's and her mother died after developing an aggressive, early on-set form of the disease. As Fiona faces her own dilemma about the care of her father, she talks to families around the country about the difficulties they face in obtaining help, from both the NHS and social services.

Fiona Phillips said “I know first hand the devastating impact Alzheimer's has for both sufferers and their families. Many carers make big sacrifices of jobs, free time and family life to look after their loved ones. But are we doing enough to support them?”