Dementia Awareness Week comes to Lockerbie

Jun 5 2009 by Jackie Grant, Dumfries Standard Friday

DEMENTIA is an illness that instils fear in the hearts of everyone.

It is an illness of the brain. When someone has dementia, brain cells are damaged and die faster than they normally do. Losing brain cells means that the person’s brain does not work as well it should. At present, there is no cure.

Many people do not know exactly what dementia is, or what it means for the sufferer and their families.

This week, is Dementia Awareness Week, and a series of public information events have been taking place across the region. At Lockerbie Town Hall on Wednesday, representatives from Alzheimer Scotland, Help the Aged/Age Concern, Parkinson’s Society, SMART Technology, Health Improvement Team and Princess Royal Trust for Carers gave dementia sufferers and their carers the opportunity to access the wide range of support agencies and services available in the Annandale and Eskdale area.

Annan-based Health Improvement Officer Gail Copeland, who helped to organise the event, said: “Our aim is to put people with dementia and their carers in control and help them get the best quality of life.

“It is absolutely essential that people with dementia know where and how to access services especially when they may live some way away from the centre of Dumfries.

“We also had a joint event hosted by Alzheimer Scotland, User and Carer Involvement, NHS Dumfries and Galloway and the University of the West of Scotland to celebrate the success of the Dementia Champion programme.”

Information stands have also been in place from Monday until today in the reception area at Dumfries Infirmary, the Galloway Hospital in Stranraer and at the Waverley Medical Centre in Newton Stewart.

Within Dumfries and Galloway there is a range of support including day care, care at home, carer support and memory clinic link workers. To find out more about these and other services, contact either the Dumfries office at 1 Gordon Street on 01387 261 303 or Stranraer services at 14a Bridge Street on 01776 889181or for further information or visit www.alzscot.org.

Memory clinic link workers are employed by Alzheimer Scotland and are co-located with the community mental health teams across the region. Their role is to offer advice to people who have been recently diagnosed, or are in the process of being diagnosed, with dementia and to their carers.

Ailsa Black, Alzheimer Scotland’s service manager locally, said: “We have a range of services across Dumfries and Galloway including daycare in Ecclefechan, Thornhill, Dumfries, Castle Douglas, Kirkcudbright, Newton Stewart and Stranraer.

“We also have dedicated carer support workers across the region as Alzheimer’s Disease is known for placing a great burden on carers, who are often the spouse or close relative of the sufferer. We really want people to know that we’re here and inform them about all the services we offer.”

Looking after someone who has dementia can be very stressful. Most carers experience a variety of emotions including sadness, guilt, anger and fear.

One Dumfries man who watched his wife rapidly deteriorate from the illness said: “She was only 60 when the onset of the disease happened and didn’t have a chance to even retire.

“We thought she was suffering from depression at first. We didn’t even consider Alzheimer’s because we thought she was too young. Three years down the line and she could die at any moment without knowing who we are any more. It’s heartbreaking.”

Another woman said: “My father used to follow me absolutely everywhere and I never had a moment to myself. I took to locking myself in the bathroom for half an hour when things got too much.”

One woman whose sister has dementia said: “She gets anxious sometimes and wants to go home to look after her children. She’s forgotten that they’re grown up with children of their own now.”