The cartoonist Tony Husband gave a poignant speech about his father’s decline into dementia during a University of Salford event for people living with the condition.
The artist, whose distinctive cartoons have been featured in magazines such as Private Eye for the last three decades, talked about his book Take Care Son – a look at his father’s experiences with the condition – to an audience of people who had also been affected by the condition, during the University’s Good Life Festival.
He even invited guests at the event to tell him about their own experiences of dementia, so he could turn them into drawings which they could take home as souvenirs of the day.
The event was organised by the University’s Salford Institute for Dementia – which brings together a wide range of experts from different fields to find innovative ways of enabling people with the condition to live independent lives – along with the Alzheimer’s Society and Social Adventures charities.
More than 70 people living with dementia and their carers attended the event, which was aimed at enabling people to learn from each other.
The guests took part in workshops and heard from speakers about schemes enabling dementia sufferers to lead full lives, involving swimming, dancing, adventure holidays, friendship groups and connecting with nature.
Those who had been affected by dementia talked to the guests about their experiences and gave them opportunities to learn about how they had come to terms with diagnosis and find new ways of enjoying life.
People living with dementia had been involved in planning the event, giving the organisers valuable insight into the best ways to support guests during the day, and everything about the event was designed around people with dementia.
The Salford Institute for Dementia was launched in 2013 to conduct vital research into living well with dementia, aimed at putting a spotlight on the humanity of those living with dementia, and aiming at enabling people to live positive, fulfilled lives and instil in everyone a confidence that they can make a difference to an individual’s experience of dementia.
Tony Husband said: “This was a wonderful event, really well organised and a pleasant atmosphere prevailed. Everyone including myself seemed to be having a really good time.”
Amanda Jervis, of the Salford Institute of Dementia, said: “Rather than focusing on the medical side of the condition, the event was an opportunity for people affected by dementia to try new activities, talk to others and make new friends.
“Because it’s been designed by people living with the dementia and their carers, this was an event unlike any other and everyone who attended got a lot out of it.”
Photo by Debbie Manley
