A launch event highlighted a new series of innovative dementia education training films that aim to upskill the local workforce and help families care for loved ones.
The full series of 10 training films has been developed with the ethical guidance and approval of the University of Gloucestershire and will be available later this autumn after being unveiled at the Pavilion in Hatherley Lane, Cheltenham.
The films, developed in partnership with people who have lived experience of a dementia, highlight a range of topics which impact on people living with a dementia and their carers. Themes include responding to distress, families and friends, eating and activities.
Practical guidance and real-world scenarios within the films aim to improve dementia care both locally and nationally for an intended audience that includes people working in health and social care, domiciliary care and family carers.
Working in partnership has been a key theme for the project which has brought together NHS Gloucestershire, the University of Gloucestershire, health and care partners, housing providers and the care home sector. The voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector have also been involved alongside people living with a dementia and their families.
The project was funded by a grant from the Arts, Health and Wellbeing Centre, a collaboration between the University and NHS Gloucestershire.
As well as upskilling the local workforce and helping families care for loved ones, the films will also be included in university nursing courses.
Ros Jennings, Professor of Ageing, Culture and Media at the University of Gloucestershire described the film series as ‘innovative’.
She said: “When people are willing to collaborate across the professions, innovative work is generated that more readily captures what people with lived experience feel.
We are learning as an academic institution and sharing expertise in a collaborative way is really the right way to go when developing projects that aim to make a change and benefit people”.
Making films is a creative research method and creative practice is what comes out of it.”
Dementia is a syndrome, which has a group of related symptoms associated with an ongoing decline in brain function. There are many different causes of dementia and many different types.
In the UK, one in 11 people over the age of 65 is living with a dementia and the number of people with a dementia is increasing due to people living longer.
Jane Haros, Deputy Director of Nursing-Integrated Commissioning (Health Care & Communities) at NHS Gloucestershire said:
“The films have helped us challenge assumptions and surface emotions as well as giving us a shared starting point to explore what we might not fully understand yet.”
Steve Shelley-King, Clinical Lead for Dementia at NHS Gloucestershire said:
“Providers have shown real courage in taking part in these films which have given a very ‘see all’ approach, it’s very brave.
Our intention is to improve both the confidence and competence of Gloucestershire’s workforce to provide a greater understanding of dementia and how to ensure high standards of care for those living with a dementia”.