Net informal costs of dementia in Singapore

Background: To estimate the net informal costs of dementia in Singapore by comparing costs related to care giving for people with different severity of dementia (mild, moderate and severe) with those without dementia (PWOD). Methods: Two cross–sectional cost of illness studies were conducted with caregiver-informants of patients with dementia (PWD) from a public health outpatient clinic and with care giver informants and PWOD from a tertiary hospital outpatient memory research clinic. The final samples comprised 51 caregivers of PWD and 137 caregivers of PWOD. Results: The net informal care cost of dementia was estimated at SG$39,053.52 per person per year and rose with severity (Severe: SG$41,774.27; Moderate: SG$ 33,130.81; Mild: SG$8,370.65). The mean annual informal cost of care for PWOD was SG$ 5,477.03, while PWD was SG$44,530.55. Conclusions: The total net informal cost of care in Singapore was estimated at SG$1.76 billion in 2015 and predicted to increase to SG$4.02 billion by 2030. Given that the number of PWD is expected to increase from 45,000 in 2015 to 103,000by 2030, this poses a heavy burden on families, national healthcare systems, social services and the Singapore economy.