• The Alzheimer’s Society claims dementia costs business £3.2 billion in lost hours
• Staff have been forced to take time off to care with relatives suffering dementia 
• Some people are forced to give up their jobs in order to care for their parents 
• An estimated 355,000 working age adults are caring for a patient with dementia

 

More than 112,000 adults are giving up their jobs each year to look after a loved one with dementia, research reveals.

 

A further 147,000 are struggling to balance their careers with their caring responsibilities as many cut back on their working hours.

 

The research, commissioned by the Alzheimer’s Society, estimates that businesses will have lost a total of £3.2billion by the end of this year due to the loss of employees to dementia care.

 

This figure has doubled in four years, with increasing numbers of the elderly succumbing to the devastating condition, at a time when care is patchy or non-existent.

 

The numbers expose the crisis in our social care system, which successive governments have repeatedly failed to address.

 

Relatives are routinely giving up jobs to look after their loved ones as so little is provided by the NHS or local councils.

 

This distinct lack of care for dementia patients is in sharp contrast to the treatment and support on offer for cancer patients, or those who have had heart attacks and strokes.

 

The figures – based on an analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research – show an estimated 355,000 working age adults are currently looking after someone with dementia.

 

This means that nearly one in three – around 112,000 – will have given up their jobs by the end of 2019.

 

The Mail has campaigned against the dementia care crisis and has called on the Government to fix this unfair system.

 

Boris Johnson has pledged to end the scandal of families selling their homes to fund care, but he has not provided any details on how the system will be reformed.

 

Jeremy Hughes, of the Alzheimer’s Society said: ‘Up and down the country, families are desperately trying – and often failing – to get the quality dementia care their loved ones need.

 

‘Instead, over 100,000 people have had no choice but to leave their jobs and try to care for their loved ones themselves.

 

‘It’s devastating for people with dementia, devastating for their families and carers.’

 

A Government spokesman said: ‘Carers make an invaluable contribution to society and this must not come at the expense of their careers.

 

‘We are working with employers to promote carer-friendly, flexible jobs and ensure better access to advice and support.’

 

There are 850,000 people with dementia in the UK, with numbers set to rise to over a million by 2025.

 

View the full article here.