Dementia & Sight loss ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk Sight Village 19 July 2016 Gemma Jolly Knowledge Officer (Health & Wellbeing) 1

2 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk “When you’ve met one person with dementia, you’ve met one person with dementia.” Professor Tom Kitwood

Dementia numbers 850,000 people with dementia in the UK Costs £26.3bn per year More common as you get older but over 40,000 people under 65 have dementia. Two thirds of people with dementia live in the community. 3 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Dementia 4 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk Is not a natural part of ageing Dementia is an umbrella term for a number of different diseases that affect the brain in different ways. It is defined as a disease that is progressive, affects more than one aspect of thinking and affects daily living.

Dementia Alzheimer’s disease Dementia with Lewy bodies Mixed dementia Vascular dementia Frontotemporal dementia 5 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Symptoms Memory loss Difficulties concentrating, organising or planning Problems with communicating Sight and visual difficulties Orientation difficulties Mood and behavioural changes 6 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Dementia & Vision People with dementia may have visual difficulties caused by the brain, but healthy eyes. Some types of dementia have a direct impact on vision –Dementia with lewy bodies –Alzheimer’s disease 7 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Dementia & sight loss Causes of sight loss in a person with dementia: Eye condition (eg cataracts) Another health condition (eg Stroke) Normal ageing of the eye Dementia 8 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Lived experience “It’s so hard for Dad to do the things he liked to do. Its not just the effect of macular disease and his poor central vision, but the confusion and loss of memory because of the dementia makes everything twice as difficult for him; you can see him just giving up. ” 9 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Lived experience Increased difficulty understanding and learning new tasks Increased disorientation Communication problems More visual mistakes Mobility, increased risk of falls 10 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Lived experience Loss of activities Social isolation Loss of self-esteem, increased anxiety Loss of independence Loss of traditional coping strategies 11 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Supporting the person Good eye care –Make the most of sight –Regular eye tests –3 Cs – current, clean and correct Environment –Lighting –Contrast –Familiar/ clutter free 12 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Supporting the person Equipment and technology Good/clear communication Strategies to support activity Other sources of support Awareness of the impact of sight loss and dementia 13 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Supporting the person Focus on what the person can do and ways to maintain this. Help the person maintain confidence & self-esteem Develop coping strategies Think practically! 14 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Visual hallucinations People with sight loss can experience visual hallucinations (known as Charles Bonnet Syndrome) People with dementia may experience hallucinations Sight loss can increase the risk of a person with dementia hallucinating 15 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

Visual hallucinations People may not be hallucinating but experiencing: –Misperceptions –Misidentifications Visual hallucinations are more common in dementia with lewy bodies, Parkinson’s disease dementia and Alzheimer’s disease 16 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

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Useful resources RNIB dementia and sight loss information ( advice-professionals-social-care- professionals/dementia-and-sight-loss) advice-professionals-social-care- professionals/dementia-and-sight-loss Alzheimer’s Society ( Social Care Institute of Excellence (SCIE) dementia gateway ( dementia/sensory-loss/sight-loss.asp) dementia/sensory-loss/sight-loss.asp 19 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk

20 ________________________________________________________________________________________ alzheimers.org.uk alzheimers.org.uk Thank you!