Creating an environment in which personalised community supports for people with dementia can develop requires the underpinning enablers of i) community level information and awareness raising initiatives and ii) training and education activities for people working in all domains of the ‘care and support ecosystem’. Both underpinning enablers play a positive reinforcing role to the support provided at all stages throughout the dementia journey.
Community-level information and awareness raising
Information and awareness raising initiatives support a change in attitude and contribute to de-stigmatising dementia. Efforts to change behaviour through stimulating active involvement of the community requires a deliberate strategy to progress from a ‘dementia friendly’ community to a ‘dementia supportive’ community. This requires targeted engagement with groups/networks in the community with a ‘specific ask’ that will add value to the person with dementias life and recognises their personhood. This takes time and skill to navigate.
| Podcast - Community Information and Awareness Raising Catherine Daly, Occupational Therapist and Community Support Co-ordinator, Living Well with Dementia project in Blackrock-Stillorgan |
| Short animations - FreeDem Films address fears about memory loss and dementia and provide practical advice about brain health |
| Podcast - Mobilising Community Supports Eilis Hession, Project Lead, Living Well with Dementia Blackrock/Stillorgan |
| Podcast - Dementia Without Walls Programme Philly Hare, Programme Manager, Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) |
| Podcast - Creating a Dementia Friendly Organisation: A Bottom Up Approach Katherine Blaker, Community Development Manager, Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) |
| Podcast - Helping a City Become Dementia Friendly Cathy Henwood, Dementia Friendly Community Co- ordinator, Bradford Dementia Friendly Project |
Training and Education Activities
The complexity of dementia and its trajectory requires an informed and knowledgeable support system of family, staff and volunteers to provide support to the person with dementia. These activities are key to ensuring that people working in all domains of the ‘care and support ecosystem’ have the necessary skills and competencies to provide high quality, person-centred care and support.
| Podcast - Training and Education Simone McGoldrick Assistive Technology Lead, 5 Steps to Living Well with Dementia in South Tipperary |
| Podcast - Building Managed Organisational Learning Prof David Coghlan, Professor in Organisational Development, Trinity College Dublin |