People living with dementia were clear about the experiences and outcomes that will improve their quality of life, maintain their lives as part of their communities, and help them plan for their futures.

Their thoughts were used to inform the emerging model of care. These themes can be split into three areas, as shown in Table 1:

• essentials for people with living with dementia
• what services are needed, and
• how services should work.

Critical issues that emerged included:

• hurdles at the very early stages of dealing with memory problems
• concerns about the process and experience of diagnosis
• the burning need to keep identity, respect, dignity and social involvement for both people with dementia and carers and family
• a gap in follow-on services after early diagnosis
• the need for support to be proactive, timely, practical, and
• the wish to remain at home.