Companions introduced to help dementia patients in Antrim Area Hospital

Admission to hospital is a stressful time for anyone and can be even more so for a person with dementia; the distress and confusion caused by admission to hospital may worsen their physical and mental health outcomes and the environment is often not conducive to meeting the needs of patients with dementia.

To address this, the Northern Trust introduced a pilot for a ‘Dementia Companion’ role in two wards in Antrim Area Hospital. The purpose of the role is to enhance the safety and experience for patients living with dementia who are admitted to an acute care ward by creating ward environments that are both person-centred and dementia friendly.

Dementia companions engage with patients providing ongoing compassionate reassurance. They spend time befriending and chatting with patients supporting and assisting them and their families with the use of memory folders and other activities as guided by the nursing staff.

In total there are six dementia companions in post placed in acute medical wards. The dementia companions have benefited from a comprehensive initial induction and training programme and receive ongoing and regular facilitation and support.

They encourage and assist patients to eat meals, e.g. by cutting up food and provision of condiments, also ensuring patients to receive sufficient fluids, tea etc. as guided by the nursing staff.

They also help patients to maintain a tidy, clutter-free environment around their bedside, ensuring patients have their call bell near to hand and that any personal items are close.

Additionally, if a patient is engaged in purposeful wandering, dementia companions will remain with them to ensure their safety minimising the risk of falls and enabling patients to remain safe within the ward environment.

A robust evaluation of the role has been undertaken over the last year and the Trust has confirmed that the evaluation and feedback has been very positive with some reduction in the falls rate and a reduction in episodes of distressed behaviours. Patients report feeling not as lonely or isolated while families report that their loved ones are often more settled and calm and feel valued.

Patients say they love having someone to talk to during a long day, they like receiving the newspaper, looking at pictures (reminiscence folders) and engaging in other activities. The posts will continue to be evaluated, through an agreed evaluation strategy and engagement from a range of internal and external stakeholders.

Due to the success of the pilot the Northern Trust has received additional funding from the regional dementia strategy group and the Public Health Agency to appoint a further four dementia companions to March 2017.

The initiative follows the regional strategy entitled ‘Improving Dementia Services in Northern Ireland’ which was published in November 2011 by the Department of Health to raise awareness of dementia and to improve and redesign services in this area.