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Guernsey has two Admiral Nurses - the first in the Channel Islands - who are working with the families of those affected by dementia, to ensure both the individual and those around them are able to cope with the changes they face.
The Admiral Nurses; Colette Bonner and Michelle Tenant, along with Sian Ogier - Associate Director Specialist Mental Health and Adult Disability Services - and Maisie Ogier from Dementia UK told us what the scheme is all about.
There are more than 400 Admiral Nurses across the British Isles including the two recently appointed in Guernsey.
Rather than solely focusing on the person living with dementia, their role is to offer specialist support catered around everyone's unique circumstances. This can include helping family members take on the administrative aspects of their loved ones life, such as bank accounts or wills, as well as arranging medical support where necessary and helping them adapt to the changes their loved one may be going through.
Above: The Dementia UK website lists many ways in which the Admiral Nurses can help people living with dementia, and their carers and families.
Guernsey's two Admiral Nurses will be working with charities and health authorities and can accept self referrals from families and carers already supporting people living with dementia.
Referrals will also be accepted from charities such as the Guernsey Alzheimer’s Association, friends, neighbours, GPs or other health care professionals.
Nurses Bonner and Tenant will working face to face and virtually to cater to needs across the Bailiwick.
Pictured: Admiral Nurses work primarily with the families of people living with dementia to support them.
In conversation, Nurse Bonner and Tenant describe how they work closely with individuals living with dementia, and those caring for and living with them.
"An Admiral Nurse is a dementia specialist nurse who specifically and primarily is there for the carer and family members who are supporting someone living with dementia," explained Nurse Tenant.
"Dementia care can be quite an upsetting upheaval of somebody's life. You've got loss of identity, loss of role, we've got grief, we've got a whole host of emotional and physical and practical implications for the individual living with dementia but also their families and carers and their life gets disrupted in a big way."
Nurse Bonner said everyone's dementia journey is different so the care they offer is tailored to individuals and their families.
"Some people will carry on for a year or two and they won't need any specific support, but then they'll find that they've reached a point where they can see a decline in their loved one and then they will reach out for support," said Nurse Bonner.
"One of the things we do as Admiral Nurses is almost be a link in that bridge for them to help to signpost and give that support for services that they might not have known about, and we can do a lot of practical things as well.
"We've recently been able to advise families on setting up lasting power of attorney, and how they can stay involved in their care, there's also other practical services we can help with, and all of the services that are available through the charities."
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