[U]niversity Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) has signalled its commitment to people with dementia by joining the Dementia Action Alliances’ Dementia-Friendly Hospital Charter.
The Trust submitted an action plan covering six key principles: staffing, partnership, assessments, care, environment and governance, which a person with dementia or their carer would expect. The charter shows the Trust’s commitment to dementia care.
The Trust highlighted the following areas which it is currently delivering:
- Dementia Champion Training days in partnership with local care home staff (there are 160 dementia champions on the Trust’s three main hospital sites)
- Flexible visiting for family and carers through John’s Campaign
- A comprehensive geriatric assessment for unplanned admissions
- Memory boxes on all surgical and medical wards
- Dementia friendly picture signage and flooring on wards around the Trust
- Feedback questionnaires for carers where they can rate care and experience.
In 2012 the Dementia Action Alliance launched the Right Care: a call to action to create dementia-friendly hospitals. All acute trusts in England were asked to make a public commitment to being dementia friendly. The charter is the second phase of the Right Care initiative. It provides high level principles of what a dementia friendly hospital should look like and recommended actions that hospitals can take to fulfil them.
In the Prime Minister’s Challenge on dementia 2020, one of the key aspirations is to create dementia friendly hospitals. The Trust is one of 164 acute and non-acute trusts around the country to become dementia-friendly and join the charter.
Dianne Smith, Dementia Matron, UHMBT, said: “It’s absolutely fantastic that we are now recognised as being a Dementia Friendly Hospital.”
Sue Smith, Executive Chief Nurse, UHMBT, said: “I am extremely proud of the dementia team and front line teams supported by Dianne. They have worked really hard to get to this point to make care the very best for patients with Dementia, their family and carers.”
