Admiral Nurse service
Our dementia services lead at the Trust is Admiral Nurse and dementia specialist Ruth Bradford. When things get challenging or difficult, admiral nurses work alongside people with dementia, their families, and carers.
They offer one-to-one support, expert guidance, and practical solutions. Our Admiral Nurse also provides comprehensive dementia training for all staff to ensure that the best practices are shared throughout the Trust.
For any support or guidance please contact Ruth on 07825722363.
Forget-Me-Not Dementia Volunteers
Forget-Me-Not Dementia Volunteers are a dedicated group of individuals who offer individual, companionship support for people living with dementia. The service aims to provide comfort and bespoke interactions to dementia patients that come to our hospital, as well as providing support and guidance for their loved ones. The volunteers regularly liaise with the ward staff throughout the hospital to ensure the care needs of each individual are being met.
This service runs Monday to Friday, 8.30am – 4.30pm and you can contact our Forget-Me-Not Dementia Coordinator Molly Shepherd on 07407876933 for any support or guidance.
Our dementia volunteers also organise regular dementia activities for patient and staff, including Imagination Dance, who recently performed for our patients and providing patients with omi machines, which give vision stimulation to dementia patients.
Activity boxes and music
There are several activity cupboards located around Lister, which can be accessed by all staff and contain a wide range of games and activities to support patients living with dementia.
The items in the cupboards include reminiscence cards, felt tips pens, vintage snakes and ladders, puzzles, conversation starter balls and twiddle blankets. These activities are designed to increase mental stimulation for people with dementia, which aids recovery and improves their overall experience during their hospital stay.
Identification of people with dementia
We ask people who are living with dementia to wear a yellow wrist band so hospital staff can easily recognise and support them.
We also use a forget-me-nots flower symbol to identify people with dementia, which are placed on the board above their bed.
Home comforts
An unfamiliar environment can be particularly difficult for a person with dementia, increasing their anxiety and difficulty in orientation of place and time. We encourage family members to bring in familiar, comforting items such as the persons own clothes, a favourite blanket or photos of loved ones.
It can also help for the person with dementia to have access to a phone so that they can get in touch with their loved ones if they feel overwhelmed (remember to also bring a phone charger if providing your loved one with a phone).
