Comparing health and social care systems for dementia across Europe: an INTERDEM policy paper

Objectives
People with dementia experience multiple barriers to accessing timely diagnosis and care, primarily due to issues on a care system level. The aim of this Policy Paper was to compare health and social care systems for dementia and unpaid carers across 14 European countries.

Method
Each country was represented by a clinical or non-clinical dementia care researcher who provided country-specific data on its health and social care system, sense-checked by health and social care practitioners. National policies were searched to inform the country overview of its health and social care system.

Results
Except for Norway, health and social care are managed separately. Barring Germany, electronic and paper-based health data are routinely collected. Scotland is the only country that collects social care data that can be linked to healthcare data. Access to health care is free at point of access, whilst social care usage is means tested in Poland, Germany, Ireland and the UK, creating a substantial financial barrier for many people with dementia and carers. Three out of 14 countries do not have a national dementia strategy.

Conclusion
Health and social care systems are oftentimes disjointed across Europe, lacking adequately linked data infrastructure. Research needs to explore the interpersonal connectivity between care systems, patients and professionals.