New Dementia SIGN Guideline.  Transforming Evidence into Practice

Clinical guidelines are a great way of making sure that the treatments we provide and receive are based on the best available evidence. In November 2023 SIGN 168 Assessment, diagnosis, care and support for people with dementia and their carers was published. It is a significant development, given it has been 20 years since we had a dementia guideline.

We both had the privilege to be part of the multi-disciplinary, multi-agency development group which had representation from all sectors, as well as from people with lived experience of dementia.

The guideline is available in several formats, so it is not just for health care professionals or people working in specialist mental health settings. As well as the comprehensive guidelinethere is:

• a checklistproviding examples of the information people with dementia and their carers may find helpful at the key stages of their journey
• a bookletfor people with dementia, their family and carers
• easy-read versions, and
• an audio version.

The guideline covers a range of practice areas in relation to dementia care.

Why should you find out more about the new SIGN guideline?

Dementia is everybody’s business, but it can be hard to keep up with new evidence or know where to find reliable information about the treatment you or someone you care for is receiving. The guideline covers six key areas in one document.

For each section you will find recommendations, good practice points and/or information points. These translate the evidence from research studies into practice and should support discussion with people with dementia or suspected dementia, their families, and carers to inform treatment planning.

Sixty-seven recommendations are made within the guideline. Of these, six are identified as key recommendations. These are the recommendations highlighted by the guideline development group as the key clinical recommendations that should be prioritised for implementation.

What next?

• The guideline is there to support best practice but that only works if people read it, share it, and implement it!
• Take a moment to consider how the SIGN guideline might make a difference to your service, or to someone you care about or to you.
• If you work as a health care professional, spread the word. Consider presenting the key recommendations at a staff meeting or simply tell a colleague about the guideline and encourage them to read it.
• Guidelines drive change – consider how you might measure the impact it has made to your practice or demonstrate how it has made a difference.
• If you are a person living with dementia, a family member or carer, the information booklet is a great resource.  Anything you read in the leaflet is based on the best available evidence, so it is reassuring to know all the information is from a source you can trust.

For more information

Read the full guideline and publications for people with dementia, family members and carers on the SIGN webpages.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland held a webinar to introduce new guideline in December 2023. You can access the webinar recording and other useful resources on the Healthcare Improvement Scotland webpages.

Thank you to Katie Shand Knowledge and Information Skills Specialist Healthcare Improvement Scotland for supporting this blog.