Dementia Carer Voices Review of 2018

Our Dementia Carer Voices team review activities over 2018 for our annual report.

2018 has been a hugely significant year for the ALLIANCE’s Dementia Carer Voices project, having received its 20,000^th pledge to make a difference.

The campaign has now reached out to 150,000 people, across 750 talks. And each of the 20,000 pledges that have been made to date are available to view on the Dementia Carer Voices website.

These pledges encompass practical improvements in the workplace, as well as more personal reflections. And, in the spirit of the ALLIANCE’s theme of Action for 2018, you can read how some of these 20,000 pledges have been turned into meaningful actions on the Case Study section of the Dementia Carer Voices website.

To reach this landmark, the project has visited:

• University and College students across Scotland on a nationwide tour;
• General Practice Nurses within every NHS Board area in Scotland;
• Numerous national conferences, such as the Health and Care Innovation Expo;
• As well as Hospitals and Care Homes across the country.

In the process, Dementia Carer Voices has developed many successful partnerships with people and organisations that the project is honoured to have been given the opportunity to work with. The project is represented on a number of national third sector discussion groups and Parliamentary Cross-Party Groups, attending: The Cross-Party Group on Dementia, the Cross-Party Group on Carers, the Cross-Party Group on Life Sciences, the ‘What Matters to You?’ steering group, the Older People’s Development Group, the Focus on Dementia Group and the Dementia in Care Homes Group.

And key messages from both the Chief Nursing Officer for Scotland Professor Fiona McQueen and the Chief Nursing Officer for England Professor Jane Cummings are shared at each of the project’s ‘You Can Make a Difference’ sessions.

Dementia Carer Voices also works with partners across Europe through the European Economic and Social Committee. This allows the project to influence the international policy agenda and ensure that people with dementia continue to have a central role in a post-Brexit world.

Elsewhere, Dementia Carer Voices has been represented at the Living with Dementia in Scotland (this link will take you away from our website) and Care of Older People in Scotland (this link will take you away from our website) conferences.

The project has featured on a number of podcasts, as well as collaborating with NHS Elect and the Acute Frailty Network on a recent film about dementia and the carer journey.

The project has also sought to promote the work of others who are making a difference for people living with dementia across Scotland, hosting various opinion pieces from people across the health and social care sector throughout the year.

Keep an eye on the Dementia Carer Voices website to be kept up to date on the project’s upcoming events for 2019.

End of page.