Dementia Action Week is an awareness raising campaign held annually by the Alzheimer’s Society. This year, from 13-19th May, they are encouraging people and organisations across the UK to take action on improving dementia diagnosis rates and calling on the NHS and Government to prioritise dementia diagnosis in policy and decision making.  

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe symptoms that can include memory, problem solving, language, personality or behaviour and everyone living with dementia is different.  There are over 200 subtypes of dementia according to the Dementia UK website, with Alzheimer’s disease being one of the most common types. Dementia mostly affects the older population however, early onset dementia can impact people in their 30s and onwards.  

A Lasting Power of Attorney (also known as an LPA) is a legal document that allows for someone to choose an individual (or individuals) they trust, who knows them and their wishes, to make certain decisions for them. This person is referred to as their 'attorney'. When a person appoints their attorney(s) (often family members or close friends), they can also specify what decisions they will make for them. LPAs are essential if you want to be able to make the decision about who is to look after you if you are ever unable to make your own decisions or look after yourself.

Many people living with dementia will reach a point where they can no longer make certain decisions for themselves, this is known as lacking the mental capacity to make those decisions. If this happens to you and LPAs are already in place, the people you trust to make the decisions you would have made and care for you in the way you would want will be able to make those decisions on your behalf.  

There are only approximately 6 million LPAs registered with Office of the Public Guardian. This sounds like a high number, but considering how many adults are living in England alone (roughly 46 million), over 40 million people do not have an LPA in place.    

LPAs must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they can be used to make decisions for the person living with dementia.  It’s important to note that it usually takes 20 weeks for a LPA to be registered, which can be an ordeal if the attorney is needed now, there’s also no fast-track procedure available for cases which require the attorney to be appointed urgently.  

There are two types of LPAs:  

• Property and Affairs LPA - This lets the attorney you appoint make decisions about your property and finances. 
• Health and Welfare LPA - This lets the attorney you appoint make decisions about your care and medical treatment. 

Dementia is a progressive disease, which means that over time it will become more difficult for the person to make plans and decisions, it’s a good idea to start thinking about having LPAs prepared as soon as you can.  A person with a new diagnosis will usually have the capacity to give instructions for the appointment of their attorneys, however as described above, it can take up to 20 weeks to register an LPA with the Office of Public Guardian. It’s a good idea to get the appropriate plans in place ideally before any diagnosis or as soon as possible after the diagnosis. If the person living with dementia is showing signs of lacking mental capacity it is not possible to have LPAs prepared.

LPAs are not just for the elderly or those with declining mental capacity, none of us know what is around the corner. It is best to make sure that the people you trust can legally help you make decisions and look after you in the event of a crisis.  

If an LPA is something you or someone you know could be interested in, please send an enquiry or request a callback today and our expert advisers will be in touch.