Assistant Psychologists: Addressing Dementia Care Gaps and ‘Finding the Why’ through the SDCC Framework
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Barbirolli Room |
Maria McGinlay
Assistant Psychologist
HC-One
Summary
Following Professor Graham Stokes’ presentation: “Designing Enabling Dementia Care Home Environments” at last year’s Dementia Congress, the Assistant Psychologists (APs) working in HC-One's Specialist Dementia Care Communities (SDCCs) in Preston (Sabrina Community) and Glasgow (Carmichael Community) would like to share their experiences.
Instrumental to the design of the communities was the introduction of the psychology graduate role of assistant psychologists (AP) who support pre-admission assessments, conduct functional behavioural analysis and daily observations to better understand the causes of distress behaviours and to implement effective interventions. With a focus on person-centred care, APs formulate behaviour care plans and support staff to put these into everyday practice. Presenters will share real life impacts of ‘finding the why’ in our SDCCs and how we believe that putting psychology alongside care is a valuable contribution to the future of social care as residents living with dementia increasingly present with high acuity complex needs.