HEALTH: New care home training launched by son of resident

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Encore Care Homes launched the successful ‘Mind the Gap’ dementia training programme across its care homes in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Fareham last year, and now they are adding a new module.

‘The Lived Experienced’ will be available from this September 2019 to both staff members at Encore, as well as family members of residents across all three homes, and is led by Andy Babbage.

Andy’s mother has dementia and lives at Fairmile Grange care home in Christchurch, which is managed by Encore. 

During the workshop, attendees will learn the importance of understanding what a resident was like before they were diagnosed with dementia, and why it is essential to continue to interact with each individual in a way that they are comfortable and familiar with.

Staff at Encore can also learn from Andy’s first-hand experience on what impact the diagnosis of dementia can have on a person, as well as their family and the crucial role the care team should play in ensuring that each relative receives he correct support.

Andy will also be sharing ideas on what care and support people outside a care home environment should show to someone who has dementia.

Extremely beneficial

Commenting on this new module, Andy said: “Following my mother moving into Fairmile Grange, I contacted the team at Encore and explained that I was keen to improve my knowledge of dementia and understand in greater detail the person-centred care that is given to every resident by the Encore care team.

“I felt this was important as it would help me to provide the best care possible for my mother and also help me when interacting with other residents during my visit.

“This was when I was introduced to the ‘Mind the Gap’ training programme, which was extremely beneficial.

“When I completed all the modules, I decided to approach Encore about the possibility of me bringing my first-hand experience of knowing someone before and after they have been diagnosed with dementia into Encore, to benefit the care team and other relatives who were in the same situation as me.

“Ultimately, ‘The Lived Experience’ module has been created to emphasis the importance of making sure there is a comprehensive life story available for every resident, which the care team can refer to in order to provide the highest standard of care going forward.”

Luke Wiltshire, training manager for Encore, said: “We are delighted to announce our partnership with Andy, who has a significant amount of experience in delivering various training programmes across numerous sectors.

“The purpose of this training programme is to create more awareness about dementia and the impact it can have on the person who has been diagnosed, as well as their family.

“‘The Lived Experience’ module will be a great addition to ‘Mind the Gap’ training and we look forward to the first workshop in September.”

For more information contact the Encore team by e-mail, or call 01202 087444.

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