Inside the life of a dementia keyworker at the Royal Derby Hospital
A dementia keyworker at the Royal Derby Hospital has spoken of her passion for working with those living with the condition.
Julia Mansfield is based on Ward 405 and is one of 10 dementia keyworkers currently working across the Royal Derby Hospital and London Road Community Hospital.
The dementia keyworker role is not clinical but was created to support nurses by providing additional “person-centred” care to improve the hospital experience for patients living with dementia.
Julia said: “Every day is different, you can't plan anything – it’s all hour by hour. Coming into hospital can be a scary experience for a dementia patient, as they're taken out of their normal environment to somewhere where they don’t know anybody and all the sights and sounds are different. Getting to know them as a person can really put them at ease though, so I try to get their life history.”
By having this dedicated time to spend getting to know patients, our dementia keyworkers are able to put patients at ease by building strong relationships with them and their families, whilst also arranging different activities on the wards.
This can include different musicians performing on the wards, a visit from a Pets as Therapy dog, movie mornings, bingo and arts and crafts sessions.
Julia added: "Some patients have end-stage dementia and it can be hard to get into that and get them to engage. We've found that playing music to them can really help though. I had an end of life patient who didn't really engage but once we played some music to them, you saw their foot or hand start tapping. I heard a quote and it’s stayed with me forever, if you can make dementia patients happy by doing something, later on they won’t remember what that activity was, but they will still remember that feeling you gave them. That’s my aim every day."
There are four dementia key workers within the Royal Derby Hospital, and six at London Road Community Hospital.
Patients can be admitted to a Care of the Elderly ward through A&E or GP admission, often with infection, pneumonia or after a fall. When they're fit to leave they're discharged as with any other ward.
Sophie Calladine, Senior Sister on Ward 405, said: "I’ll never forget one patient who didn’t speak for a week. We couldn’t get in, she just wasn’t interested. Then the therapy dog came in and she started speaking fully. She was stroking it and she was talking to it. Her face lit up and her body language completely changed, it was amazing. I will never ever forget her face."