This week, Monday 19th May – Friday 23rd May, marks Dementia Awareness Week.
This year, Brunelcare, an 84-year-old charity supporting older people across the Southwest, is getting more involved than ever, and is running a series of activities, presentations and Q&A sessions throughout the week, offering insight into how we support people’s families across Brunelcare’s six homes.
Dementia Awareness Week is an awareness-raising campaign. Each year, Alzheimer’s Society works with individuals and organisations across the UK to encourage people to act on dementia, with this year’s theme highlighting to audiences the most common symptoms of dementia.
Brunelcare will be hosting sessions across the week led by its Dementia Coaches, for family members and friends to join for free. The sessions include Singing for the Brain, Reminiscence Cream Tea, a dementia walk with over 60 residents from Brunelcare’s Deerhurst Care Home, Introduction to Dementia, Mealtime Experiences, Dementia Coffee Morning and also the chance to try using the Empathy Suit, which allows people to experience what it could be like living with conditions like dementia. These sessions will run across all six of Brunelcare’s care homes and reablement centre.
Stuart Wright, Brunelcare’s Dementia Lead, said: “Raising awareness is crucial, as dementia is often misunderstood. Many people associate it solely with memory loss, when in fact it can affect a person’s thinking, behaviour, communication and ability to perform everyday tasks. By increasing knowledge, we can foster environments that are more empathic, supportive and accommodating and can celebrate the complex and skilled work our care teams deliver every day to people living with dementia, enabling people to experience a quality of life they may not otherwise have. We are looking forward to this week’s sessions and are excited to welcome new faces!”
Brunelcare has also launched FITS into Practice, (Focused Intervention Training and Support), a training programme designed to equip Brunelcare’s care home staff with the knowledge and skills to deliver person-centred care to people living with dementia, particularly those experiencing distress or behaviours that can negatively impact the individual’s wellbeing.
A key outcome of the programme is the development of Dementia Coaches within the charity’s care homes. These are specially trained staff members who become champions for good dementia care. They help lead cultural change by supporting their teams, modelling best practice, and embedding person-centred approaches into daily routines. Dementia Coaches also work to reduce the use of antipsychotic medications by promoting alternative strategies to manage distress.
By investing in Dementia Coaches, implementing FITS into Practice and running sessions for Dementia Action Week, Brunelcare can create a more supportive, compassionate environment for the people they care for, and an increase knowledge and understanding for its colleagues.
