What is a Memory Clinic? – Dementia Detection Wolverhampton & Shrewsbury

Specialist team

We are a leading provider of private mental health services for older adults offering immediate access to a specialist team consisting of qualified Mental Health Nurses and a Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist who specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of dementia conditions, without the need for a referral from your GP.

Our multidisciplinary team is led by Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist Dr Chandrashekar Basavaraj, a vastly experienced old age psychiatrist who specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of dementia.

We aim to provide a comprehensive diagnosis quickly as early diagnosis is key to any course of treatment that may be required.

Our team carry out a full review including a detailed assessment by our specialist nurses and consultant, brain scans, blood tests and individually tailored investigations specific to your needs.

We review clients at our easily accessible Shrewsbury consulting rooms.

The assessment process

If you believe that you may be experiencing memory problems you can contact Summerfield Memory Assessment Centre direct without the need to contact your GP first.

If someone you know is suffering with memory problems you can contact Summerfield Memory Assessment Centre to arrange an assessment or seek further information.

We will then book a date to begin the assessment process.

First Appointment

Prior to your appointment with Dr Chandrashekar Basavaraj, we will arrange for you to visit our clinic and spend time with our experienced healthcare team.

Our Registered Mental Health Nurses will complete a number of specialised questionnaires designed to assess your memory and our healthcare professionals will complete a physical examination, conduct an ECG and take a sample of blood for analysis.

We will then arrange an appointment/referral for your scan at a hospital convenient to where you live.

Patients require a brain scan as part of the assessment as this is important in diagnosing dementia or determining if there are any other causes for the memory loss. We have arrangements with several private scanning facilities; they provide excellent quality scans at locations throughout the UK.

Consultant Appointment and Diagnosis

You will require a second visit to the clinic to meet with Dr Chandrashekar Basavaraj, our specialist Psychiatry Consultant.

Following the assessments, he will give a comprehensive diagnosis and formulate a treatment plan with post-diagnostic advice before liaising with the patient’s GP to inform them of the findings.

If a diagnosis of dementia is found we can then provide a private prescription for antidementia medication.

*If a diagnosis is not initially clear and further input from a psychologist or blood tests are needed, additional charges may be required.

Follow Up Appointment

Around four months after a diagnosis is given and a treatment plan has been put into action we will arrange a further appointment for memory assessment and general functioning.

If medication has been started the side effects and effectiveness of this will be reviewed.

At this point, we can either provide recommendations to a GP with regards to treatment.

*A further charge would apply for a follow-up appointment.

Dementia medication

Medication can improve or delay symptoms although it is important to remember that antidementia medication is not a cure for dementia.

Typically, the medication used for patients with early signs of Alzheimer’s dementia, in particular, is a group of medications known as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors.

These include Donepezil (Aricept), Rivastigmine and Galantamine.

How will Antidementia Medication Help?

Antidementia medication may help to stabilise the illness or improve the symptoms for a period of time.

Dementia medication can also help improve memory as well as alertness and motivation.

How effective is the antidementia medication?

Studies have shown that 40 to 50% of people who have taken these drugs have shown some improvement or stabilisation of their condition over a period of six months.

How is antidementia medication started?

Following a comprehensive assessment by Dr Chandrashekar Basavaraj and his team, including blood tests, formal assessments of memory skills and scans to rule out any treatable causes for the memory problems we will decide if an antidementia medication is appropriate.

Patients are initially started on a low dose of these medications and they will take at least 4 weeks to show their full effect at the starting dose. A review is then required after the initial prescription at around 4 months.

Further information is available along with the medication prescribed.

Dr Basavaraj is able to prescribe your medication and have it delivered to your chosen address without the need for you to attend a pharmacist. Summerfield Memory Assessment Centre works with a leading Pharmacy company to ensure that your medication is dispensed and delivered safely.

As we are a private service, prescription charges would apply which you will be informed of prior to any medication being issued. This charge will be payable direct to the Pharmacy.

Lasting Power of Attorney

What is ‘Lasting Power of Attorney’ (property and affairs or for welfare issues)?

Following the assessment, we can complete all necessary Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) documentation and forward to the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG).

An LPA can be made for health and welfare and/or property and affairs. The registration fee to the OPG is included.