Dementia Reframed online workshops
Join our DEMENTIA CARE WORKSHOPS on Zoom, in real time. These are interactive sessions participate in the discussions, ask your questions, learn from others
what is distinctive about our workshops?
Our online workshops are designed to help you understand more about dementia in positive and creative ways, and how to care well for someone with dementia – caring well means caring for carers!
Dementia Reframed’s approach is distinctive.
We see dementia as a social experience because it is all about relationship. The relationship is between a person who has dementia and the people who will support them from diagnosis onward. This relationship may be with a partner, a son or daughter, a grandchild, a friend or neighbour, a care worker, a nurse, a doctor. Dementia changes everyone – not only the person who brain is changing, but it will change all these relationships as well. Understanding how and why these changes take place, and how they change over time, helps us to keep relationships strong. We can continue to connect, to communicate effectively, to encourage independence as well as provide the right support.
Dementia Reframed focuses on supporting carers. They are the key to a quality of life with dementia! Good care is always based on good relationships: carers can become aware of why changes occur and how to respond well – that means a care has to be able to adapt their thinking, attitudes, expectations – and more. That is not always easy but awareness helps us manage so much better. The more a carer understands, the better they are able to care for another person and for themselves. This is not just about keeping someone safe, fed or occupied – it is about maintaining relationship – that is what human social life is all about – it about ‘being alive well’, living as good a life as possible.
Our workshop facilitators include health professionals, academics of different disciplines, advocates, and others but our central expertise is that everyone of us has lived experience as a carer of someone with dementia - even the younger people on our team. Our websites and workshops are designed by carers for carers, and we keep learning from the carers who engage with us. There is no one story of care, so shared stories are invaluable.
Our approach is social not medical. We do not diagnose, treat or give advice, although we can often point you in the right direction. Rather, we share insights from experienced carers to support all those touched by the dementia experience to live as well as possible, positively, sensitively and well-informed.
WHO ARE OUR WORKSHOPS FOR?
Our workshops are designed for: family, friends, volunteers, care workers, allied health professionals and medical professionals - for people who want to know more about living well with dementia, for people with dementia, and all those who share their lives.
Everyone needs to become dementia-aware and dementia-friendly, whether or not we are carers. If you work in a public space – cafe, restaurant, bank, post office, shops (especially food shops), social services, emergency services – then being dementia aware will enhance your capacity to engage with people with dementia and that will enhance their life as well as yours.
Each workshop is kept to a maximum of 8-10 participants to ensure everyone has an opportunity to engage (larger groups can be considered, e.g., in residences: please contact us). There is no minimum – you could end up having a one-on-one chat. We run workshops in local areas – please invite us to visit you. And we run workshops online with different time options.
WHAT ARE OUR WORKSHOPS?
Relationship-centred support for those who care for someone with dementia. In our workshops you will explore what is meant by dementia, how to think positively and creatively about the changes it brings to our relationships, dealing with problem times, and caring for yourself as a caregiver.
We ask all participants to first enrol in Dementia as Social Experience: An Introduction. After this, you may enrol in any workshop (except for a series which must be done in order).
WHAT WORKSHOP SHOULD I START WITH?
Start with Dementia as Social Experience: An Introduction (DRW1) and then you are free to choose from the other offerings. Some workshop themes are offered as a series to explore a theme in more depth. You can join one of the advertised times, or get a few friends and family together and ask for your own time.
You may also like to join in a Let’s Talk session. These are just chat sessions with no agenda except to catch up, share stories, raise questions, or talk about the weather! These are offered a couple of times a week.
how much do workshops cost?
Income under $25,000 - all sessions are FREE
If you have a group, please email us for a quote.
Cost includes materials (you will receive notes by email following the session), and free enrolment in Let’s Talk sessions for as long as you like.
WHAT DO I NEED TO JOIN A WORKSHOP?
Access to a computer with Zoom installed, and ability to receive emails with attachments. If you are in a noisy location, you may also need headphones. We may be able to provide training, depending on your location.