Safety
Assistive Technology
Assistive technology can be used to make living with dementia easier. Technology can be used to assist with a number of things e.g. helping with daily tasks and improving safety both inside and outside the home.
Assistive technology can help people with dementia with;
Memory Issues
Mobility
Communication (Speaking and Hearing)
The Alzheimer’s Society have a free downloadable factsheet about what is available. You can access this via the link below;
https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/staying-independent/using-technology-everyday-life
Items can also be purchased from them via this link.
Dementia UK have a comprehensive leaflet available to download for free which addresses ‘How to make the home safe and comfortable for a person living with dementia’. The link to access this can be found below.
Herbert Protocol
The Herbert Protocol is a national scheme which encourages carers of people living with dementia to complete a form which holds useful information such as frequently visited places, medication requirements and a photograph. This information can be used in the event of a person with dementia going missing.
The valuable information that the form holds can easily be sent to the Police or Search & Rescue to reduce the time taken in gathering this information in the event of someone going missing.
The Herbert Protocol initiative is named after George Herbert, a War veteran of the Normandy landings, who lived with dementia. He died while he was ‘missing’ on his way to his childhood home.
To find out more about the Herbert Protocol please click here.
Search Dog Heroes Scent Project
The Search Dog Heroes project is delivering awareness to thousands of families nationally whose loved-ones are living with dementia, learning disabilities or mental health problems; all of which are linked with high risk disappearances, by delivering educational tools to advise on how to prevent disappearances and how to prepare for them. This includes how to capture a person’s scent and safely store it in case the worse happens, through a designed scent toolkit.
To find out more about this scheme or order a scent kit for your loved one please click on this link.
Message in a Bottle
The Lions Club ‘Message In a Bottle’ scheme is a free scheme designed to encourage people to keep their personal and medical details on a standard form and in a common location – the fridge.
In the event of an emergency the attending emergency services will be able to access the information easily. Users of the scheme attach a green sticker to the inside of the front door or on the main entrance to the home and another on the door of the fridge.
As a minimum it will save the Emergency Services valuable time identifying you and your emergency contacts. By telling whether you have special medication or allergies or not, it is a potential lifesaver and provides peace of mind to users and their friends and families.
Bottles are FREE and available from your local Chemist, Doctors Surgeries, health centres, Neighbourhood Watch group, housing associations and many other places including police stations. You can also obtain one from West Berkshire Council’s Adult Social Care team, based in West Street House, West Street,Newbury RG14 1BD (01635 503050).
If you are unable to find a Bottle and would like to take part, please contact Newbury Lions Club.
