Update of latest COVID-19 support & guidance for those living with dementia and healthcare professionals
1. Volunteer support
A. NHS – https://nhsvolunteerresponders.org.uk/ NHS England and NHS Improvement, working with Royal Voluntary Service and the GoodSAM app have set up this to help people in England to stay safe during coronavirus (COVID-19). NHS Volunteer Responders have now completed more than a million tasks:
· avoid busy places by collecting their shopping, medicines and other important items
· have regular contact with other people by making regular friendly phone calls
· get to medical appointments by giving lifts.
B. Alzheimer’s Society- Companion-calls
C. AGE UK – Befriending calls
D. Local support groups are running telephone support
E. Our own CLCH volunteers – The Seasonal Cheer Volunteer is a specific volunteering role created by CLCH to tackle isolation in the run up to the New Year.
Seasonal cheer volunteers will be making regular contact with socially isolated patient’s through-out December into the New Year ensuring our most socially isolated patients feel connected.
To make our volunteering roles more accessible we have moved a number of roles to an online platform:
• Befriending Volunteer: Contacting socially isolated patients up to 3 times a week over a period of 10 – 12 weeks offering a listening ear.
• Well-being volunteer: Checking in on recently discharged volunteers from the rehab unit ensuring they are transitioning back into the community comfortably.
• Bluejeans Volunteer: Supporting patients to set up the Bluejeans app on their phone a head of a clinical appointment.
2. Activities available during isolation
Local libraries online, kindle books, social media, virtual tours etc – Access to virtual museums, concerts, plays, book reading e.g.
· Audible is making some of its books free
· Google Arts and Culture: Collections
· Good Housekeeping: Best virtual tours
· UpgradedPoints: Best virtual museum tours
· COVID-19 and social isolation (MARCH Network, 2020) Creative isolation -This tool shares some home-based, creative ways to support mental health during these unique and uncertain times
