Dr. Laura O'Philbin:

In relation to younger-onset dementia, which is diagnosis before the age of 65, we are talking about people who could be in their 30s, but most typically are in their 40s, 50s and 60s. Their needs differ from those of older people and current dementia services are not actually that helpful for them. They might go into a day centre in their 50s but the other people in the centre might be in their 70s or 80s and they are just at different points in their lives. The 50-year-old could have a young family at home, be thinking about other things and have different interests. Research that we commissioned and research that the dementia services unit in the HSE has commissioned shows that currently dementia services are targeted more towards older people and are not acceptable to people with young-onset dementia. They do not want to go and spend time with people who are in a completely different age bracket. They just feel that it is not suitable.

A lot of them may be more active. They may not have mobility challenges and so may want to do hiking, swimming or football, for example. In the past couple of weeks, I have been doing a lot of research around different interventions across the world for people with younger-onset dementia. There is really innovative stuff like hiking clubs and canoeing. They want to do the same things they were doing until they got their diagnosis. They still want to be the same person, to coach the GAA team, to go to the library, the match or the music club, whatever it may be. In 2022, we published evidence-based and consensus-led guidance on how community groups can support people living with younger-onset dementia. It is not just about creating specific services for this cohort, it is about opening up our local communities to make our services more inclusive for a person with younger-onset dementia. They may want to go to the men's shed or the library or they may work in the local charity shop. We have all been talking about when you get this diagnosis of dementia, you do not become this person who attends this specific service, you still do the same things, there just may be some additional accessibility requirements. Innovative stuff is happening around the world. The ASI is a very innovative organisation. We speak with many people with younger-onset dementia who tell us their needs and wants. Those are the main differences; it is that stage in life.