Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services – in the Senedd at 3:15 pm on 7 July 2021.
Thank you very much, Luke, for that supplementary. And you've raised a very important issue, because we too often talk about dementia as an all-encompassing condition, whereas, as you've correctly highlighted, it does cover a range of different conditions. It is absolutely vital that we ensure that people have an accurate diagnosis, and also that that accurate diagnosis is properly recorded. Last year, a Welsh health circular was issued, requiring memory assessment services and primary care services to accurately record someone's dementia diagnosis according to set READ codes that are issued. Also, a new all-Wales pathway of dementia standards has recently been issued, which reinforces the need to do that, and, in order to attract funding from the dementia action plan, it is required that organisations align with those standards. So, that will help drive that progress, but also there's further work ongoing to embed the need to properly record the diagnosis being taking forward. But I'm also very happy if you would like to write to me with more detail about your concerns, as I recognise this is something you feel strongly about. I'd be very happy to look further at this and to meet you to discuss it further. Thank you.