The Dementia Challenge
At the recent Basingstoke & Deane Disability Awareness Day, Home Instead Basingstoke invited visitors to take the "Dementia Challenge" to raise awareness of this condition.
Let's Think Dementia
Around 900,000 people in the UK are currently living with dementia, and this figure is expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040.
Awareness of dementia amongst the general public is low so we wanted to take the opportunity of the Disability Awareness Day to bring the condition and it’s effects to people’s attention.
For anyone looking for support in caring for a loved one, Home Instead Basingstoke is pleased to offer Dementia Care in Basingstoke.
Meet The Dummies
Meet our three dummies, Millicent, Miriam and Bob (they’re the ones at the front!). They represented individuals with different sets of care needs, including dementias, and we summarised how Home Care by Home Instead Basingstoke could meet those needs.
We invited visitors to try our Dementia Challenge, to gain an insight into the difficulties often faced by people living with these conditions.
Now Take the Challenge
To simulate the impairments that result from dementia, we kitted participants out with:
- Gloves which reduced manual dexterity, mimicking the pain and stiffness experienced by around one in three dementia patients and making it harder to manipulate objects;
- Glasses which blurred or otherwise restricted vision, mimicking the visual difficulties resulting when the eyes might still be healthy but the brain cannot perceive what is being seen;
- Headphones playing white sound to mimic the noises in the ears and resulting confusion & disorientation that can accompany cognitive decline.
Participants were then invited to try a few normally simple tasks, to get an idea of how someone living with dementia might struggle:
- Folding a napkin
- Setting a dinner place
- Building a tower with a child’s play blocks
- Writing a few words such as “My name is …”
What Might a Friend Say?
The tasks were not at all easy!
If able, a friend living with dementia might say to you:
- My eyes are healthy, but due to my brain now having processing difficulties I have problems perceiving what I see
- Please don’t argue with me, or tell me I am wrong
- Don’t ask me what I did earlier or what I had for lunch – my lack of recall can be embarrassing.
At the End of the Day
After a hard day’s work, the three tired dummies were taken home, back to the comfort and independence that home care can provide.
We provide care for the elderly to help them remain comfortable and independent in their own homes for longer.
To find out more about why clients love Home Care by Home Instead Basingstoke please give us a ring, send us an email or click on our enquiry button below.