Newbury care homes launch guide to create dementia-friendly community
Two Newbury care homes are launching a free guide to support people whose loved ones have been diagnosed with dementia ahead of Dementia Action Week.
A poll of 2,000 adults carried out by Care UK, which operates Newbury Grove, on London Road, and Winchcombe Place, on Maple Crescent, found over a third of British adults (35 per cent) have many questions about dementia – but do not know how to get the answers.
The guide, titled ‘Let’s talk about dementia’, follows an easy-to-read Q&A format.
It has been designed by Care UK’s experts, including head of nursing, care and dementia, Suzanne Mumford, as well as home managers and team members across more than 150 care homes.
Aimed at those caring for a loved one living with dementia, the guide is filled with answers to the questions care home teams across the country have been asked by relatives or members of the community – from identifying the signs of the condition, and interacting with a person living with dementia, to everyday questions regarding diet changes and sleep patterns.
It also addresses topics rarely covered in other guides, including behaviour changes such as swearing and loss of inhibitions, making it a unique toolkit for families and friends of people living with dementia, whether they live at home or in a care home.
To mark Dementia Action Week, Winchcombe Place will be hosting a dementia friends session on June 15.
Adarsh Kurian, general manager at Newbury Grove, said: “Dementia Action Week is just around the corner, so we’re exciting to be releasing our brand-new guide, ‘Let’s talk about dementia’, to help our community understand what it’s like to live with dementia.
“As our survey has shown, dementia remains a largely misunderstood condition, meaning a diagnosis is often a worrying and uncertain time for those involved.
“We designed our guide with this in mind, ensuring it provides answers to all the real-life questions we’ve been asked over the years.”
Winchcombe Place home manager Kerry Thompson added: “We’d like to encourage local people to download a copy of the guide or reach out to us directly if they need any support, so together we can create a more dementia-friendly community.”
To pick up your free copy of the guide, contact home admissions advisor at Newbury Grove, Coral Elvin, at newbury.HAA@gracewell.co.uk or contact customer relations manager at Winchcombe Place, Vicki Lambourne, at vicki.lambourne@careuk.com.
