Bluebird Care Westminster partnership with Dementia Pathfinders

Bluebird Care has partnered with Dementia Pathfinders to deliver specialist training on dementia for our staff. 

Bluebird Care has partnered with Dementia Pathfinders to deliver specialist training on dementia for our staff. The first of 6 courses was held on the first week of September. 6 of our staff along with our Supervisor were trained on how to engage people living with dementia by using movement and dance. It was a fun packed training that had very positive learning outcomes such as the knowledge of how dementia affects activities of daily living, behaviour and communication as well as understanding the risk of safeguarding issues.
 
The staff went through a series of exercises aimed at stimulating the senses of someone living with dementia. These activities included throwing a ball to one another, using everyday items such as a dinner plate in an unusual way to stimulate someone's senses through movement. These activities are proven to increase the wellbeing of a person living with dementia. They ended with using these movements in line with listening to a variety of music from the 60s and 70s. Overall, the activities were lively, interactive, simulative and motivational.

Melissa Bromfield (Bluebird Care worker) said;
  Our care workers have gained skills on how to engage people with dementia by using their senses and on how to communicate effectively with people with dementia. By the end of the training, all participants were left with the confidence to explore and experiment with creative approaches to providing care. The outcomes has overall helped our care workers to provide the care which we pride ourselves in delivering.
 
Dementia Pathfinders Community Interest Company is a social enterprise delivering education and learning for people working in the dementia care field and providing therapeutic care and support for people with dementia and their families.