A new 11 bed residential dementia unit has been heralded as paving the way for the next step in the delivery of care for those afflicted by the disease.
The dedicated dementia unit at the Four Seasons Longfield Care Home in Eglington became fully operational earlier this year and already supports eight residents.
The care home already provides support to 35 residents who receive nursing care.
Commenting, manager Louise McCloskey said that the demand for dementia care has significantly increased locally over the last number of years, and that it was vital that the facility had the right staff to deliver the care.
“The difficulty in recruiting the right number of qualified nurses meant that a dementia residential unit was more viable,” she said.
“We have a dedicated team of Care Assistants who are all trained in the unique Four Seasons Dementia Care Framework, a programme which is being rolled out across all of our care homes across the UK.
“Their dedication and commitment makes life for our dementia residents as comfortable and as independent as possible.”
She continued that major steps forward had been made in the field of dementia care, namely The Dementia Framework.
“The Dementia Framework is a unique step forward in the personalisation of care for people living with dementia,” she added.
“The care team uses exclusive purpose-designed technology to help build and continuously update a picture of each resident’s individual experience of their care and their needs.
“This is next generation of dementia care which makes life better for the person with dementia. A vital part of the Framework is the bespoke support and training the team here in Longfield receives.
“This goes beyond the practicalities of caring for someone with dementia and through interactive simulation gives colleagues a deeper understanding of what it is like to live with dementia.”
She continued: “This is a new era for the delivery of care in Longfield and a milestone in the delivery of dementia care in the wider North West area.”
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