Care services for people with dementia need a radical overhaul, Alzheimer Scotland has said.
Many of Scotland's estimated 84,000 sufferers do not receive the co-ordinated health and social support that is vital to help them live in the community, the charity said.
Carers, partners and families of sufferers are also lacking essential support as a result of the current "fragmented" care system.
Alzheimer Scotland wants to see a co-ordinator appointed to oversee the treatment and care of dementia patients. This may include access to psychological services and regular reviews of patients' wellbeing.
It is one of a number of recommendations outlined in its new report, Delivering Integrated Dementia Care: The Eight Pillars Model of Community Support. The charity hopes the document will act as a blueprint for local authorities and NHS boards.
Dementia includes a range of brain diseases of which Alzheimer's is the most common. It predominantly affects older people.
An ageing population means that, based on current estimates, the number of people with dementia will double within the next 25 years.
Henry Simmons, chief executive of Alzheimer Scotland, said: "We wish to work alongside the Scottish Government, NHS Boards, local authorities and other bodies to ensure they use the Eight Pillars as a portal to deliver equal access to the best possible treatments and support for every person with dementia.
"Only through doing this can we be sure that we are using resources to the best possible effect to enable people to live in their own homes, in their own communities and with their families for as long as they choose.
"Anything less than this is not true equality and nothing less than this will satisfy the basic human rights of people with dementia and their families to live as equal and valued citizens of Scotland."
