Commitment to the care of people with dementia in general hospitals

Background to the commitment  

The aim is for this commitment to be used as a guide to support the delivery of dignified care for people living with dementia and their families, within general hospital settings.

The commitment is made up of five principles which form a shared commitment to improving care. Each principle is considered essential to ensure the appropriate delivery of care, and factors are identified which will support their delivery based on guidance and best practice. They are intended for all those people responsible for care, not just nursing staff, to help support improvements and make positive changes. 

Read the full commitment and principles and access the resources to join us in putting the commitment into practice. Make SPACE for good dementia care: an easy way of remembering the commitment. 

The commitment has been informed by:

• findings from a survey of over 700 practitioners involved in the delivery of care
• findings from a survey of over 1,480 people with dementia and family carers/supporters about their experience of care
• input from a range of stakeholders, including colleagues from other royal colleges, voluntary organisations, professionals and service users
• contribution via the stakeholder event held at RCN Headquarters in June 2011
• national guidelines and campaigns to support  better care for people living with dementia and their families.

We would like to thank the following organisations for their support: 

The commitment has been developed as part of a dementia project supported by the Department of Health and from further contributions and support from the following organisations: Royal College of Physicians, Royal College of Psychiatrists, British Geriatric Society, College of Occupational Therapists, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, Age UK, The Kings Fund, Dementia UK, NHS National End of Life Care Programme, College of Emergency Medicine, Alzheimer's Society and the National Council for Palliative Care and the Design Council.