Dementia Friends Champion Helen Morris offers some thoughts on the awareness of dementia
WHAT A great month for Dementia Friends! The brilliant TV advertising campaign using The Beatles’ song ‘With a little help from my friends’ recruited 25,000 new Dementia Friends in the first week as people went on to watch the short video at www.dementiafriends.org.uk and signed up online. You can catch the advert on You Tube anytime or go straight on to the site.
What a great way to boost our numbers here in Saddleworth, where we are hoping to make Uppermill one of the first dementia friendly communities.
If you have not seen this inspiring advert let me tell you that Public Health England and the Alzheimer’s Society have just produced a powerful advert with one simple message – we can all get by with a little help from our friends.
If we can increase our knowledge about dementia and build new communication skills, then when a friend starts to find things more difficult, we can all help them to live well.
I can’t express this as well as the advert but it all revolves around that willingness to make a few changes to the way we view dementia to make sure people can continue to function well in our midst, where they belong.
We just need to look out for each other, particularly by continuing to include everyone in our social activities and so make life better not just for the people with a diagnosis of dementia but for their partners too.
Meanwhile thanks to everyone who reads this column and please do go online and learn more about living well with Dementia.
Finally, though the TV advert is wonderful, I am still very keen to run a free, one hour presentation to any interested groups so please call me on 07976 702171 or email helen@close-communications.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.