The Virtual Dementia Experience Returns to Bluebird Care Stamford

As part of our ongoing commitment to Dementia Care and training, the Virtual Dementia Experience Bus returned to our offices in January 2019  to provide further training and insight into living with Dementia.  The experience was part of training of our staff but was open to relatives and family of customers who live with Dementia.

Training - Unique insight into Dementia
Bluebird Care Peterborough & Rutland, were featured in The Stamford & Rutland Mercury following the Virtual Dementia Tour training, which replicates how people living with dementia might feel. 
 
Our first visit and experience with the Dementia Bus was in September 2018 where both staff and relatives of some of our customers who live with Dementia, underwent the training to experience just some of the symptoms.

On board, as part of the experience, you wore headphones, gloves and glasses to take away their primary senses and recreate the real anxiety dementia sufferers feel.

 A number of relatives of customers with dementia also participated to share their experiences.  They said the experience, provided by Training 2 Care Ltd, was very powerful. 

Red Williams, reporter at the Mercury, also attended and described his experience.  Red, whose father has been recently diagnosed with Dementia, writes about his experience.  We also had two members from Dementia Support South Lincs, as invited guests to the training to help to broaden the understanding and support in our local community.

Bluebird Care Peterborough and Stamford Director Leisa MacKenzie said: “It has been a great ambition of ours to undertake this training.  This training is unique as it gives you the chance to walk in the shoes of someone living with dementia. It’s very exciting and this is a big day for all of us because we care for so many people who have dementia in this area.”

Leisa added: “You can start to understand the many different issues they experience every day.

“You will experience being confused, isolated, lost, intimidated, vulnerable and much more and therefore understand what you need to change to improve quality of care.

“The Virtual Dementia Tour is the only scientifically and medically-proven method of giving a person with a healthy brain an experience of what dementia might be like.”
 
Michelle Inwood, Registered Manager of Bluebird Care Peterborough & Rutland, said: "By adding this experience to our on-going training programme, we can bring an enhanced level of care to our customers and help us to retain our position as the leading home care provider in the area”.
Leisa continued, the training was so powerful, and the feedback so strong from the members of the team who experience it as part of their Dementia training, Tim and I made the commitment to have all of our team trained in this experience.  There is no doubt it helps staff to truly understand that by making small adjustments to care, we can really start to improve the lives of people living with dementia.  The Dementia bus returning in January 2019, and more of the team, a more relatives underwent this experience.
There are plans to have the Dementia Experience return to Bluebird Care in Stamford, later in the year.  Two and a half hours long, the opportunity to undertake this training will be made to all relatives of customers we support who live with Dementia.
INTERSTED – if you or someone you know would like to undertake this experience, please contact Michelle Inwood on 01780 480 881 or email michelleinwood@bluebirdcare.co.uk