Action urged as Alzheimer’s and dementia deaths reach highest level since 2000

The Scottish Government is being urged to make dementia care a “national priority” after deaths from the condition, together with Alzheimer’s disease, reached the highest level since 2000.

Official data from National Records of Scotland (NRS) show 6,612 deaths were caused by Alzheimer’s and dementia in 2024 – a 2% rise from the previous year.

Such cases now make up about one in 10 of all deaths in Scotland.

The figures show the death rate from Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia has almost doubled in the last two decades, with 122 deaths per 100,000 people in Scotland in 2024.

Age Scotland chief executive Katherine Crawford said deaths rising year on year is a “stark reminder that much more must be done to support those affected”.

She insisted: “Today’s figures are a clear sign that greater investment and focus are needed at all levels.”

She called for funding to go to grassroots projects which “play a vital role in helping people live well with dementia”.

Ms Crawford said supporting such schemes can help “ensure that people affected by dementia receive the support they need”, but also that they “feel empowered to engage meaningfully with their communities, ultimately leading to longer and healthier lives following diagnosis”.

However she stressed: “Community action alone cannot shoulder the burden. We urgently need the Scottish Government to make dementia care and support a national priority – ensuring timely diagnosis and consistent access to high-quality care for everyone who needs it.”

Labour health spokeswoman Dame Jackie Baillie said it is “deeply troubling that so many lives are still being lost because of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias in Scotland, with the rate of deaths per 100,000 people almost doubling in the last two decades”.

She added that while the Scottish Government had published its first dementia strategy 15 years ago, there had been “a failure in delivering on those early promises, with inconsistencies and delays in diagnosis, as well as a lack of consistent care for those who are vulnerable”.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton urged the Government to set out minimum standards and entitlements for those with dementia.

He said: “Too many people with dementia feel as if they are a burden. They have been badly let down by this Scottish Government.

“What we can do is set out minimum standards and entitlements for care so that people can live with dignity and not feel left behind.”

The NRS figures show the vast majority of fatalities were among those older than 80, with 85% of deaths from Alzheimer’s and other dementias occurring in this age group.

Almost two-thirds (64%) of such deaths occurred in care homes – 4,258 fatalities.

Of those who died in 2024, 64% were female and 36% male.

NRS also found death rates for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias in the most deprived areas were 1.3 higher than they were in the least deprived communities.

However, its report noted: “This compares to the rate of deaths from all causes being twice as high in the most deprived areas as in the least deprived areas.”

Phillipa Haxton, head of vital events at NRS, said the rate of deaths from Alzheimer’s and other dementias had “risen alongside the growing number of people in the oldest age groups”.

She said: “The average age of death from Alzheimer’s disease or another type of dementia is 87. Of those who died from these conditions, 85% were over 80.

“This is one of the leading causes of death for people in Scotland and accounts for around one in 10 of all deaths.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We want to ensure that people living with dementia can access high-quality care and support they need. That’s why we are investing in dementia services and social care, to support those who deliver these services and those who rely on them.

“We will provide almost £2.2 billion of investment into social care and integration support this year.

“Our 10-year dementia strategy includes specific investment of £4.35 million this year to increase direct support to dementia community groups across Scotland and improve access to post-diagnostic support.”