Home Care Coordinators, Jess Steadman and Narelle Walsh are now certified dementia guides thanks to their completion of a ‘Dementia Knowledge in Action’ training program through Dementia Training Australia (DTA).

DTA provides nationwide, high-quality education and training on the care of people living with dementia. Established in October 2016, DTA’s mission is to improve the care and wellbeing of both people living with dementia and staff delivering their care.

The program Jess and Narelle undertook as professional development involved attending two two-day workshops in Sydney, the completion of several online learning modules, and a practical workplace project.

“The educators were amazing. It was a very good course with a focus on practical scenarios and simulations. We learned so much about how to respond more effectively to situations and behaviours that may arise for a person who is experiencing dementia,” says Narelle.

“It was really interesting to learn about the importance of colour, the use of open space, and effective signage to assist someone who may be experiencing dementia,” adds Jess.

“Throughout the course we had a DTA mentor, who was always in contact with us, ready to answer our questions and to help us make the most of our learning,” says Narelle.

“The workplace project we chose to explore was the ‘All about me’ sunflower, which involves gathering knowledge about the needs and preferences of each client to improve our delivery of our Home Care services to them,” says Jess.

Narelle and Jess, in their roles as Home Care Coordinators, have always been only a phone call away for Home Care staff, who may need additional information or help when they are attending a service at a client’s home.

As dementia guides, with the extra education they have gained, Jess and Narelle are now also able to offer dementia-specific support and links to useful resources (such as brochures and videos) to staff, if needed, so that our care service can be tailored to the specific needs of individual clients.

By investing in this type of training for its staff, St Agnes’ Catholic Parish continues to place the needs of its community first and to cement its reputation as a leader in dementia care across the region.