Staff at Salford Royal have been showing their support for Dementia Awareness Week by becoming Dementia Friends.
Porters, security staff, receptionists and domestic staff are just some of the colleagues who have been attending informative sessions designed to find out what it is like to live with dementia and what they can do to help vulnerable patients and visitors to the Trust.
This year’s Dementia Awareness Week, 15 – 21 May will encourage people who are worried about dementia to confront their worries.
Salford Royal has an ongoing programme of developments in place to further enhance the quality of care and experience for patients with dementia. Initiatives include the revolutionary pop-up Reminiscence Pods for use on the wards, the relaxing Dementia Courtyard, clearer signage around the hospital site and refurbished day rooms.
Salford Royal Chief Executive Sir David Dalton is also leading the Dementia United Partnership, launched to transform the experiences of the 22,000 people who will be living with dementia by 2020 in Greater Manchester.
All staff working across Salford Royal will come into contact with patients and visitors at some point during their working day and dementia specialist nurse Jackie Marsh believes it is essential that everyone is aware of how they can help and support.
Jackie said: “Visiting a large hospital site can be quite daunting for someone living with dementia so it’s important to us that patients and visitors to our site feel safe and supported. It’s great that so many of our staff have been enthusiastic about becoming Dementia Friends so they can recognise when someone may need that extra bit of help.”
The one-hour Dementia Friends sessions are part of an Alzheimer’s Society initiative to help create dementia-friendly communities throughout the country.
During March and April, sessions were held at Salford Royal for staff and members of the public.
Members of the Trust’s security team, who patrol the hospital site, are now Dementia Friends and the sessions have already proven to be invaluable.
Steve Cook, Assistant Security manager at Salford Royal, said: “Becoming Dementia Friends has really helped our officers in the course of their duties. One colleague recently put his knowledge to the test by providing support to an elderly gentleman who was very anxious and confused. The matter required extremely sensitive handling and a great deal of compassion, the foundations of which were laid through attending the dementia awareness session.”
