Friendly Communities Healthy People

Friendly Communities Healthy People

As part of our participation in the Dementia Supports in Rural Saskatchewan, the Alzheimer Society will be focusing on engaging rural recreational facilities and community centres around the issues of dementia and dementia friendly programming in the project area.  Dementia Supports in Rural Saskatchewan project is focused on reducing the stigma and social isolation of people living with dementia and their care partners in the Yorkton, Melville area and surrounding communities.

This year we will be focusing on engaging rural recreational facilities and community centres around the issues of dementia and dementia friendly programming. Our goal is to engage organizations in a conversation about how recreational and community programming and services can be made more accessible and inclusive for people living with dementia and their care partners.

We are working in cooperation with Parkland Valley Sport, Culture and Recreation District, as part of the next stage of this project.

Why it Matters:

60% of people with dementia live in their communities. People living with dementia and their care partners want to remain an active part of the community they belong to and continue to participate in the activities that matter to them.  Recreational and community centres are central to our communities and quality of life and can offer people living with dementia and their care partners an opportunity to engage with their community.

Simple Yet Significant

Everyone can help make their community dementia friendly. Often small, simple changes can make a real different in making our communities more accessible and inclusive for people living with dementia.

Dementia friendly communities support people living with dementia to be engaged and feel welcomed where they work, live and play. A dementia friendly community also focuses on stigma reduction so people living with dementia feel supported to participate and contribute in meaningful ways.

We are hoping the project will help you and your organization to:

• Understand and recognize the signs of dementia.
• Learn how to communicate in an effective, respectful way.
• Think about specific ways you can support a person living with dementia in your work.
• Take action in how your recreation centre, or other community space, may become more dementia friendly.
• Offer insights about programs and services that are mindful of people in the community who are living with dementia.

 

How it Works:

The process is intended to be simple and allow organizations to make changes that they have the ability to, as all organizations are different.

To begin, reach out to our Dementia Community Coordinator, Jackie Hofstrand, for more information and get the conversation going. Our hope is to engage and visit as many communities as we can and introduce the concepts and principles of dementia friendly programming. Jackie can provide a presentation for your staff and volunteers or simply have a conversation to share some information and resources overviewing dementia friendly community programming.

If you choose to move forward with learning more about dementia friendly programming, Jackie is also available to make recommendations on your facility, space and, introduce organizations to  the basics when it comes to making dementia friendly changes. The idea is to provide you with the knowledge and understanding necessary to amend or enhance your services and space to be more inclusive and accessible to people living with dementia in a way that makes sense to your organization.

No Cost No Obligation

There is no cost or obligation to participating.  The project covers the expenses of Jackie’s time and travel. The only commitment we require from you, is the time to share about how your organization, programming, and facility currently run and being open to how we might be able to be make them more accessible and inclusive for people living with dementia and their care partners.

How to Get Involved                             

We would like to engage and visit as many interested communities as we can.

There is no obligation on your part other than giving us some to time to share with you.

We hope you might be one of them.

If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact:

Jackie Hofstrand, BSc.
Dementia Community Coordinator
Alzheimer Society of Saskatchewan
122-345 Broadway St. W Yorkton S3N 1N8
Phone (306) 783-6606
[email protected]

 

About the Dementia Supports in Rural Saskatchewan Project

Over the past three years, the Alzheimer Society of Saskatchewan has been partnering with the University of Regina in a project called: Dementia Supports in Rural Saskatchewan (DSRS). The project is focused on increasing the social inclusion of people living with dementia in rural communities. The project area is centred around Yorkton, Melville, and the surrounding rural communities.