HAMPSHIRE is one of the top five UK areas with the highest incidence of dementia, figures have revealed.

According to the most recent figures from Alzheimer’s Research UK, 27 per 1,000 people in the New Forest West constituency were diagnosed with dementia, making Hampshire one of the top five places.

Dementia continues to be the UK’s biggest killer, beating Covid-19 since the pandemic began.

It has become one of the most important health and social care issues for the UK with more women in the UK dying from dementia and Alzheimer’s than breast cancer, lung cancer and heart disease.

A cohort of 18 leading organisations from across the UK’s health and social care sectors, including National Care Forum, Care England, National Care Association and PainChek have called on Boris Johnson to take urgent action to improve the level of technology-enabled dementia care across the country’s social care sector.

The group has submitted an open letter to the Prime Minister signed by around 100 private sector, not for profit organisations as well as private individuals, calling on government to improve the financial and strategic support for dementia care of the future, to allow social care organisations to embrace the power of technology and innovation to improve the care for people with dementia and those who support them.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, said: “The United Kingdom has made significant progress on improving support and recognition for people living with dementia, however, we need to maintain the momentum, and to reach for the ambitious goals that we set for the Dementia 2020 Challenge.

“We require the government to make good on their commitments, and for our society to improve their support for people living with dementia.”