YOUNGER-ONSET ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE - LEARNING FROM THE EXPERIENCE OF ONE SPOUSE CARER

There are estimated to be 17000 younger sufferers of dementia currentl y living in the UK. At present, individualized service and practice in itiatives for younger sufferers and their carers remain fragmented and poorly developed. This is despite potential additional caregiving str essors caused by the age of onset, such as financial difficulties due to disruption in the work pattern, children still living at home, and the sufferer's decreased life expectancy. Drawing on an individual car er's personal case history, this article details a spouse carer's indi vidual experience of her husband's decline through the stages of young er-onset Alzheimer's disease. Pointers for policy and practice for you nger sufferers and their carers are drawn from this case history and a role for the community psychiatric nurse is outlined.