Leading In Dementia Training

Training Manager Nicola has arranged for us to use a virtual reality headset that links to a smartphone and gives a powerful recreation of what it is like for someone living with dementia.

We uphold a very high standard of training here at Bluebird Care Maidstone and have recently been trialling the use of virtual reality to compliment our classroom learning on dementia.

Training Manager Nicola has arranged for us to use a virtual reality headset that links to a smartphone and gives a powerful recreation of what it is like for someone living with dementia.

Using 'A Walk Through Dementia', which is a groundbreaking app from Alzheimer's Research UK, the aim is to help our staff understand a little more about some of the challenges that dementia can bring and through that understanding, further improve the care our customers receive.

The app uses a combination of computer generated environments and 360 degree video sequences to illustrate in powerful detail how even the most everyday task of making a cup of tea can become a challenge for someone with dementia.

The app includes three scenarios that cover purchasing items from a supermarket for a cup of tea, challenges encountered when navigating a street and making a cup of tea for visiting family members.

This new headset was trialled with our office team, who commented on how helpful it was. The headset immerses the wearer into a world that is really quite different to our own.

Here is an example of one of the scenarios:

Hilary Evans, Chief Executive of Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity, said:

Care Manager Mel explained: