Care home aims to reduce stigma of dementia

Valley Lodge Care Home, in Matlock, will host dementia evenings on the last Wednesday of every month, starting from 6.30pm on February 26.

Kate Leivers, manager of dementia services for Ashmere, which owns the care home, said the home wanted to offer support to sufferers of dementia and their families.

She said: “It’s a very difficult time for people and we have the space here so we thought we’d open it up to the community. We’ll have a lot of information available and support for people.”

The evenings are open to anyone in the community who is affected by dementia.

The home is looking at different ways of treating dementia patients, including sensory treatment and reduced use of anti–psychotic drugs.

It will also be taking on up to ten new staff members who will be specially trained to work with dementia sufferers.

Kate was confident the care home had performed well in its most recent inspection by the Care Quality Commission, after the regulator issued enforcement action following a damning report last year. The results of the latest report will be released shortly.