People with dementia are experiencing poor care in hospital, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Less than half the 7,987 the elderly dementia patients in a national audit were assessed in hospital, an "alarmingly low" number.
Despite the growing numbers of elderly people needing treatment, a third of hospitals do not have guidance to ensure that the patient's carer is fully informed and involved in decisions.
The audit of 210 hospitals across England and Wales was commissioned by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership, and carried out by a team from the college and other organisations.
The audit found a 10% drop in patients prescribed antipsychotic drugs, with patients more likely to be assessed for their nutritional needs.
But 41% of hospitals do not provide training in dementia care for new staff, 40% do not train support staff such as receptionists and 11% do not train nurses.
George McNamara, head of policy at the Alzheimer's Society, said: "Hospitals are under immense public and political pressure to improve their standards, but given that people with dementia occupy a quarter of hospital beds, it is scandalous that improving dementia care is not a top priority for a number of hospital managers.
"We know that staff want to improve their knowledge of dementia care, but they need to be offered the right tools, support and training to do so. Without a serious culture change to ensure that new policies are actually being put into everyday practice, care for people with dementia cannot and will not improve."
Norman Lamb, the care and support minister, said: "Whilst there are some excellent examples of dementia care in hospitals, this report highlights too many areas where care for patients has failed."
He called on every acute hospital to sign up to the government's call to action on dementia, which includes commitments to making hospitals "dementia friendly". He said 20 trusts had so far failed to sign up.
Sarah Boseley