Dentist supporting Dementia Week

A dentist in Renfrewshire is reinforcing its commitment to local people living with dementia by providing all staff members with access to a specialist initiative.

The nationally-recognised initiative ensures people living with dementia are supported in the local community and continue to access much-needed oral healthcare.

This Dementia Awareness Week – which runs until June 4 – Iain Buchanan Orthodontist is supporting Alzheimer Scotland, by becoming Dementia Friends, in its bid to raise awareness of the disease and to encourage Scotland to‘see the person behind the diagnosis’this campaigning week.

A number of clinical and support staff at the practices are Dementia Friends trained through an official partnership with Alzheimer Scotland.

The on-site team have received specialist training and information about dementia and the varying ways it can affect an individual.

Measures that each practice has implemented to support people living with dementia include reassuring patients and making them comfortable within the practice, communicating in an accessible, jargon-free way, encouraging family members to attend appointments if preferable and encouraging self-directed care and decision making.

Iain Buchanan Orthodontist is part of the Clyde Munro Group.

Fiona Wood, chief operations officer at Clyde Munro said:“We are incredibly proud of the partnership we have with Alzheimer Scotland and believe our role extends beyond the walls of our practices, we want to support people in their communities, at a local level, and being Dementia Friends allows us to do this.”