Connecting People Connecting Support: Partnership working in action 

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In conversation with Scottish Dementia Working Group and National Dementia Carers Action Network

At the beginning of this year we were delighted to welcome 32 first year students from  the BSc Hons Speech and Language Pathology Course at the University of Strathclyde for their non-clinical placement experience. The first-year students joined us for two half day sessions before they embarked on their clinically based placement.

Students are prepared for their visit through in-class presentations and activities at the University of Strathclyde, supported by directed self-study of online orientation materials and reading. Their reading before joining us included:

What is dementia?

Role of speech and language therapy in dementia

With Speech and Language Therapy you CAN postcard

Tips for Talking

Manual for Mealtimes.

Alzheimer Scotland

Scottish Dementia Working Group

National Dementia Carers Action Network

In their time with us, the speech and language therapy students, joined our staff in the Alzheimer Scotland Brain Health and Dementia Resource centres in small group for an introduction to our work in communities. We also offered an afternoon with all 32 students together in our service in Glasgow, where they met with both the Scottish Dementia Working Group and National Dementia Carers Action Network and had a conversation about brain health, living with dementia and supporting a person with dementia. At the end of the afternoon, we invited the students to answer one question:

During your visit to Alzheimer Scotland today …“what was important to you?”

Their replies included:

“I learnt that dementia affect people in many different ways & hearing different experiences”

“What was important was, to hear real life stories, to really understand how it impacts people. Also, how we can do more, to help & promote speech and language therapy in the future”.

“To better understand both the lived experience of both the person and carers”

“Thank you for today! Incredibly informative, I learned things about dementia I’ll carry for the rest of my career”.

However, you can read their full comments & feedback here

I don’t know about you, but I find their feedback reflective and considered. Their feedback makes us hopeful that meetings and placements like these make an impact and help to support our future AHP workforce to be skilled and confident in dementia care. Let us know what you think too!

Contributors

Elaine Hunter @elaineahpm
National Allied Health Professions Consultant, Alzheimer Scotland
Visiting Professor, School of Health and Social Care, Edinburgh Napier University.

Dr. Aisling Egan @AislingEganSLT

Teaching Associate and Course Leader for BSc (Hons) Speech and Language Pathology

School of Psychological Sciences and Health, University of Strathclyde.



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