Government to Appoint First National Dementia Tsar

The government is set to appoint its first national dementia tsar, a move prompted by charities urging ministers to treat the condition with the same urgency and seriousness as cancer. The appointed individual will be tasked with providing leadership, focus, and accountability to drive change in dementia care.

The full-time role, advertised on the Department of Health and Social Care website, offers a salary of £171,600 per year and will report directly to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. The job advert emphasizes that dementia is one of the country's most significant health challenges and that this role will support the Prime Minister’s commitment to improving the adult social care system.

The announcement follows a statement by social care minister Alison McGovern at the Alzheimer’s Society annual conference in London, where she acknowledged that "dementia has been neglected for far too long." She added that patients and their families are "too often left to navigate a shattered system at the most difficult time in their lives."

This development mirrors the appointment of Professor Sir Mike Richards, the first cancer tsar, in 1999. His tenure oversaw three consecutive cancer strategies and is credited with improving care and survival rates.

Baroness Louise Casey, chair of the Independent Commission on Adult Social Care, had called for the appointment of a dementia tsar in March, advising the then health secretary to establish a full-time position with national responsibility for dementia prevention, treatment, and care. While welcoming the job advert, Baroness Casey criticized the government for the time taken to initiate the recruitment process and the pace of change, stating, "It doesn't take six months to work out that you need a tsar and what that tsar looks like - it's one post!"

Michelle Dyson, chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Society, has previously accused the NHS of treating dementia patients as "second class citizens," often providing them with little more than a leaflet upon diagnosis. She contrasted this with the cancer pathway, which involves urgent treatment, specific diagnoses, and a clear care plan. Dyson stated, "Government must make dementia a priority and learn what it can from cancer to create a future where dementia no longer devastates lives."

Sir Mike Richards echoed this sentiment, adding, "Dementia deserves the same ambition that has transformed cancer care. Now is the time to build momentum."

The job advert specifies that the successful candidate must have experience in senior leadership roles, with proven ability in influencing national policy, system reform, or major public service delivery. While insight into the impact of dementia on individuals, families, and carers is considered desirable, it is not a mandatory requirement.

Dyson expressed optimism about the appointment, stating, "This will help dementia at last receive the attention that is so desperately needed and long overdue." She emphasized that the dementia tsar must be a catalyst for change, driving progress in research, diagnosis, and social care, and must have the authority to unite leaders across sectors, crucially involving people living with dementia and their loved ones in the process.