IT is one of the great triumphs of modern medicine that by and large we’re all living longer, healthier lives. But there are consequences.

One of these is the growth in the number of older people living with dementia.

Dementia can be a heartbreaking for families forced to watch a person they love fading away into a fog of forgetfulness and confusion before their eyes. And it heaps added pressure on an NHS already struggling to cope with the combined effect of austerity cuts and growing demand. There are an estimated 850,000 people in the UK living with dementia - and that number will only increase.

Now the York Teaching Hospital charity has launched a £200,000 appeal to raise money to improve care for patients with dementia while they’re in hospital.

York Hospitals Trust already has volunteers who help support dementia patients during meal times.

But the new cash will be used to buy equipment such as tablets which can be used to show patients photographs, and memory boxes, which contain items designed to stimulate their memories and their sense of who they are.

Where patients consent, their beds could also be identified by a special flower symbol, so staff meeting them for the first time know they have dementia.

The aim is to ensure patients with dementia get as much stimulation and positive attention as possible while in hospital, so when they’re ready to go home, they are as fit, alert and healthy as they can be.

That’s a hugely laudable aim, and this is a very worthy appeal. We hope readers will get behind it.