Dementia services are seeing a lot more patients

SUNDERLAND Royal Hospital has revived sessions at its dementia hub offering therapy for hospital patients with dementia.

In-person sessions at the hospital’s Alexandra Centre had previously halted due to the pandemic, with specialist staff from the delirium and dementia outreach team (DDOT) instead visiting patients on the hospital wards. But, sessions at the centre are now back on the programme as the hospital marks Dementia Awareness Week.

The outreach team offers therapy in the form of games and quizzes, while the Hospital Elder Life Programme assistants encourage people to talk about memories and reminisce with one another. The room at the Alexandra Centre features displays of items like books and photos hearkening back into the past.

Visits to the centre also help to break up a patient’s day and help them to socialise, while the team there help them to improve mobility where possible too. Sessions tend to be held around mealtimes, to help encourage those with dementia to eat and drink.

This year, the South Tyneside and SunderlandNHS Trust aims to encourage people and their families to seek a timely diagnosis and avoid reaching a crisis point when it comes to dementia. Claire Boylan is an specialist elder life practitioner who helps to plan these events. She said: “It is really good for the patients that the centre is open again. What we have set up in the Alexandra Centre is tailored for these sessions. Some of our patients spend quite a bit of time in our hospital. It gives them a chance to be somewhere different, helps break up their days and helps stimulate them.”

■ Details about the support for dementia patients and their families can be found on the Trust’s website.