The Importance of Engagement for People Living with Dementia

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a variety of challenges for us all. One thing we can all relate to is the loss of engagement while we try to adapt to new ways of connecting with family and friends. By Guest Author, Maree McCabe, CEO Dementia Australia. 

For people living with dementia, isolation can be a reality all day, every day even under normal circumstances. Sadly, restrictions may have amplified this tenfold.

Balancing safety and social interaction is paramount during the pandemic in order to maintain the physical and mental health of people living with dementia either as residents in aged care homes, or living in the communities along with their families and carers.

Of equal significance is providing compassionate access, especially where there is a long-held pattern of people providing care and support to their loved one in aged care. Visits should continue with the same stringent health and screening measures as providers currently have in place for their staff.

With good hygiene practices and clearly communicated processes we fully support visitors to be able to enter aged care – this dictates that all staff and visitors have had their flu shot. Homes can also arrange for checks on arrival and visitors can be instructed to remain only in the room of their loved ones.

We acknowledge the complexity of this situation and commend the work of providers and staff to keep people safe during this time. While we continue to hear positive and moving stories from our clients of providers doing all they can to maintain engagement between family, carers and residents, we are still hearing of aged care homes who are restricting visitors completely.

If stimulus is reduced for people living with dementia the loss of cognitive function can escalate. Over time these are losses that most people living with dementia will not be able to regain. This is why it is so important to ramp up the focus on engagement and communication at this time of restricted physical contact. For people with dementia living in the community, many are experiencing loss of confidence and function as a result of restrictions. 

The disruption of routine for people living with dementia can create uncertainty so trying to maintain a routine as much as possible can make a big difference. Interaction can help reduce anxiety and mitigate any concerns a resident may have.

Clients have told us of many inspiring and creative examples of engagement with loved ones ranging from video calls, to printing out emails or photos to give to residents, to scheduling window visits with phone calls.

Where visits are not possible due to health concerns or an outbreak we encourage staff to involve families wherever they can to actively plan for different forms of engagement and methods of communication.

For people living with dementia not every idea will work every time – but this ongoing connection is so important for everyone.

We do know that the more you know about the person, the more you understand about their stage and form of dementia, the more you can help them as an individual. Being flexible in your approach will help with any situation.

As a guideline for the aged care industry, residents, families and carers the Industry Code for Visiting Residential Aged Care Homes during COVID-19 was developed to ensure a human rights approach to care that both protects and respects staff, aged care residents and their visitors.

Infection control practices and processes are an essential element of reducing the spread of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases such as influenza. The Department of Health has COVID-19 infection control online training available for health care workers in all settings. It covers the fundamentals of infection prevention and control for COVID-19.

We have developed some COVID-19 Help Sheets on our website dementia.org.au – with one specifically detailing tips for residential aged care providers.

Free, online courses have also been announced by the Centre for Dementia Learning at Dementia Australia to assist frontline aged care staff delivering care to people living with dementia during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The courses are the first two modules of a suite of online courses offered by the Centre for Dementia Learning. They are offered free to anyone within the aged care sector who signs up to the Dementia Australia mailing list before 30 June 2020. To find out more about the free online courses and other education options visit our website and use the Promo Code OED to access.

We are all physically isolating in some way, but it does not mean we have to feel socially isolated. By using innovative strategies and working together we can create positive experiences for people living with dementia, their families and carers.

For further information and support I encourage anyone in the community – individuals and staff to contact the National Dementia Helpline on 1800 100 500.

By Guest Author, Maree McCabe, CEO Dementia Australia