My Role as Dementia Champion at Mellish House

I joined the team at Mellish House 10 years ago, starting as a Care Assistant. I was promoted to Senior Carer after 6 months and 5 years ago, I became a Team Leader and Training Supervisor.

Since the very beginning of my career at Mellish House, and over the past 10 years, my passion for dementia care has grown. Almost all of our residents are living with dementia and our approach is to support our residents to live well with their dementia, something I wholeheartedly believe in.

Every Person Living with Dementia is Unique

One of the most important things I’ve learned is that every person living with dementia is very different - unique, really – so our approach for everyone has to be different and completely geared towards that individual. For example, there are many types of behaviour that are associated with dementia and all behaviour is actually a form of communication, so when you know what causes certain behaviours to arise with a particular resident, you can look for ways to eliminate triggers or discomfort based on what you know about that person.

The most rewarding part of our job is being able to have a positive impact on our residents' wellbeing and improve their quality of life, just by understanding their dementia and giving person-centred care.

The Dementia Champion Role and What it Brings

I love being the Dementia Champion at Mellish as it helps me to focus on what I’m passionate about - delivering a high standard of care for our residents and improving their quality of life. As part of the role, I work with our ‘Dementia Observation Tool’ – which is a way of discreetly observing, looking at situations from the point of view of residents and our team, then giving feedback that will help improve our residents' experience and wellbeing. I’m also there to give any positive behaviour support to the team and help to de-escalate situations. I attend monthly Dementia Champions meetings so we can share ideas and best practice across Caring Homes, and I bring updates back to Mellish House.

Dementia Training for our Teams and Relatives

Working with Chris Elsley, our expert Dementia Trainer, is inspirational. Her passion for dementia care is outstanding and this really stood out in her training. I especially enjoyed how she got us to step into the shoes of people living with dementia, helping us to understand how our residents might perceive the world. I think this experience can only improve the level of care and empathy we give. We also learned the ‘hand under hand’ technique, where a carer gives subtle support that still allows the resident to have independence while being assisted – when eating, for example. In this way, the resident feels in control and retains their dignity.

Chris also held a dementia workshop for family and friends after the team session, sharing some of the same techniques with them as she’d shown us in our training. We’re always keen to share our knowledge with our relatives as the more they learn about how living with dementia can be, the better they understand their loved one. This really helps with communication and means they can have more meaningful visits.

The Incredible Team at Mellish House

As Dementia Champion I want to make sure I’m up to date with best practice and share it with the team so we can all work together to give our residents the highest possible level of care. The team at Mellish House is incredible. They all have a high level of understanding and compassion for our residents and most importantly, the whole team ensures that our residents are cared for in a way that we would wish our loved ones to be cared for. There’s no higher standard than that.

Discover Mellish House Care Home

Mellish House Care Home, situated near Sudbury in Suffolk, provides residential and specialist dementia care in a fresh, bright and comfortable environment. The home offers care that is tailored to individual needs, interests and preferences, and a team who are committed to delivering the very best. If you would like to learn more about the types of care and services available from Caring Homes, please visit our website page. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or would like to learn more.