Loss and Grief in Dementia

Section 4
4.2 Supporting the person with dementia with loss and grief
"The acknowledgement of the ongoing process of grief, the rolling and cumulative
changes in what is being grieved for is very valuable. I spent a lot of time after my
diagnosis beating myself up a bit for falling into grief in strange and unlikely
moments, but realised this wasn't just indulgence or lack of rigour in accepting the
reality, it was a new grief for a new realisation"
(Ronan Smith, vice-chairperson of the Irish Dementia Working Group, personal communication).
To be able to recognise loss and grief in a person with dementia, you need to have an understanding
of the types of losses that a person with dementia commonly encounters, in addition to having
knowledge about dementia as a condition and how best to support the person to communicate.
While it is recognised that each person with dementia is unique and should be treated in a personcentred
way, there are two groups of people with dementia who may require additional considerations
from you as a healthcare staff. These are people with intellectual disabilities and dementia and people
with young onset dementia (people who develop dementia under the age of 65).
people with intellectual disabilities and dementia
In the context of an ageing population of people with intellectual disabilities living in Ireland, the
prevalence of dementia within the population of people who have an intellectual disability is rising (77).
People with intellectual disabilities are three to four times more likely than the general population to
develop dementia and this prevalence rises where a person has a diagnosis of Down Syndrome (76).
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Loss and Grief in Dementia