News story

Alzheimer’s Society training programme in care homes aims to reduce antipsychotic prescriptions

An Alzheimer’s Society training programme is being rolled out to 150 care homes across the UK.

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

An Alzheimer’s Society training programme, supported by funding from the Department of Health and the HC-One care home group, is being rolled out to 150 care homes across the UK.

An initial trial of the Focussed Intervention Training and Support (FITS) programme found it reduced the use of antipsychotics in care homes by 50%. Paul Burstow, Care Services Minister, said:

‘Far too many people with dementia are robbed of part of their lives because they are needlessly given antipsychotics. In order to reduce this we need to make sure staff working with people with dementia understand the condition so they are able to treat the person, not just address the symptoms. That’s why we’ve put £100,000 towards this vital project.__

‘The Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge has set out the coalition’s plans to make the UK a world leader in dementia care. Projects such as FITS will be vital to achieving that.’

Find out about the Dementia Challenge.

Find out more about the FITS programme on the Alzheimer’s Society website.

Published 18 June 2012