Council supports drive for dementia-inclusiveness

Addressing the April monthly meeting of Cavan County Council, Carole Beattie, Chair of the Cavan branch of the Alzheimer Society of Ireland recalled a moment in 2004 with her husband Jack a few years into his “journey with dementia”.

As husband and wife they’d attended a local hotel for lunch. But after the dish arrived, Carole recalled to the meeting of elected members that Jack has “looked at me in a puzzled way”.

He had forgotten how to use the fork and knife in front of him. “I was devastated. He was in his early 60s, fit and well looking, and when I tried feeding him, I was aware that other people in the restaurant were staring and talking about us in quite loud voices. So we left. We were made feel so uncomfortable that we didn’t go out much after that, and I felt very lonely and socially excluded.”

Her story, Carole said, is indicative of thousands of similar scenarios facing families across Ireland, a country where 30 people are diagnosed every day with the progressive and degenerative disease, 11,000 per year, and with increasing numbers of people under the age of 65.

“There is still a huge amount of stigma attached to people with mental illness,” said Ms Beattie, who has dedicated the last 14 years of her life to running a monthly Alzheimer’s support group where she is “still hearing stories of the stigma experienced by people with dementia and their carers. Dementia is not simply a health issue, but a social issue that requires a community response.”

Last month Ms Beattie was among those to host a dementia inclusive community event at the Townhall Arts Centre aimed at encouraging local people, businesses, and services in Cavan to become Friends of ASI, and make the Cavan the first dementia-inclusive county in Ireland.

It follows on from Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys opening the ASI Daycare Centre at the John Sullivan Home in Cavan Town in June 2023, and from an initiative spearheaded by Ms Beattie some years back when she and a senior nurse on the ASI Cavan Branch Committee took an information bus to every large local town to try spread awareness.

“We started in Swanlinbar,” she recalled, but was left feeling “disappointed that so few people” showed up.

Moving on to Ballyconnell, Ms Beattie said she was “astonished” by the number of people from Swanlinbar who then turned up. “They hadn’t wanted to be seen boarding the bus in their own town.”

Making Cavan the first dementia inclusive county in Ireland offers “several advantages” suggests Ms Beattie.

Not only would it enhance the “quality of life” for people living with dementia by creating an environment that is “more understanding, supportive and accommodating” of their needs, but it would also foster a “sense of community support” and reduce the stigma associated by promoting “awareness, understanding and acceptance” of the condition.

“It ensures that public spaces and services and facilities are designed to be accessible and user friendly for people with dementia, thereby promoting inclusion and independence. It provides training and education for community members, businesses and healthcare professionals on how to interact compassionately with people living with dementia.

“It offers support services and resources for caregivers, helping them cope better with the challenges of caring for someone with dementia.”

It can have economic benefits too, boosting tourism and the attractiveness of businesses that prioritise dementia friendly practices. Finally, it has the potential to reduce healthcare costs associated with dementia care “through early intervention and support”.

Education though is “key” says Ms Beattie in making Cavan a dementia inclusive county.

With support from the WHO, the ASI National Office, and the HSE, the Cavan Branch of ASI is urging everyone who can to become a Friend of ASI. The ASI has also developed an online module that An Gaisce students can complete, which helps increase dementia awareness.

“Next we would like to target businesses and the hospitality industry, sports clubs, etcetera.”

ASI will urge them to send one or more representatives to a training session lasting 90 minutes for which they will receive a sticker stating their group or business is “dementia inclusive”.

“This is a completely new initiative,” concluded Ms Beattie. “No bars have been set, or criteria to be reached. But we have dedicated people, and we’ll do our best to be the best county in Ireland for people living with dementia and their loved ones.”

Fianna Fáil’s Áine Smith, who invited Ms Beattie to address the council, said they were doing “wonderful work” to try create awareness. She also welcomed the work being done to engage younger generations.

Party colleague Patricia Walsh was also in attendance at the Townhall launch. She described it as “emotional”, particularly after hearing testimony of a close personal friend.

There was support too from John Paul Feeley (FF), who spoke of the difficulties faced around the number of significant changes made in relation to the law governing the area of incapacity and power of attorney, which had made the process “unwieldy” and “cost prohibitive”. Ms Beattie agreed, describing the situation now as “an absolute minefield”.

There was support too from Fine Gael’s Trevor Smith, from Independent Brendan Fay, and from Carmel Brady (FG) who outlined that early diagnosis of dementia and “appropriate management” are crucial for quality of life.

She issued a call to the wider community to show their support as volunteers to the day care centre. “They’re looking for volunteers who can give an hour and a half a day or assist the centre to give the families of dementia sufferers a short respite from their full time caring lives.”

Finally, there was support for the motion that the council gets behind the ASI Cavan branch’s push for the county to become Ireland’s first dementia-inclusive county from Cathaoirleach Philip Brady.