North Devon now has its very own Admiral Nurse, who will be supporting patients with dementia, their carers, families and staff at North Devon District Hospital (NDDH). Angela Walter has been appointed as Admiral Nurse – dementia clinical nurse specialist at NDDH. Admiral Nurses provide specialist support to people with dementia and their carers and families, giving one-to-one support, practical advice and expert guidance. They are trained and supported by the charity Dementia UK. Angela has spent many years working in the hospital as a nurse and was most recently sister on Capener Ward....
A retired crown court usher recently diagnosed with dementia is taking part in research to ensure a cure is found before any of her loved ones suffer the same fate.
Eighty-year-old Ann Matthews, from Exeter, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease at the end of last year. She is currently taking part in a clinical trial at Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust.
Ann, who lives with her husband Tony, has shared her story as part of Dementia Action Week, which takes place from 21-27 May, and hopes others will be encouraged to take part in research...
53 Memory Cafes across Devon have benefited from a generous grant from the Provincial Grand Chapter of the HRA Masons of Devonshire, giving people with dementia and their carers ‘moments to remember’.
Memory Cafes offer practical and emotional support, information, guidance and, perhaps most importantly, the hand of friendship to people living with dementia and their carers in the local communities where they live. For many, a visit to their Memory Cafe is the only regular support they receive following a diagnosis.
The social contact and peer support gained from spending...
A public exhibition will feature poems, cartoons and images created by well-known artists working with people with dementia.
The insightful works, part of a University of Exeter research project, will be on show during Dementia Action Week (May 21-27). It captures moments of difficulty, and also love, joy and laughter, showing the multifaceted experience of life with dementia.
The project involved photographer Ian Beesley, cartoonist Tony Husband and poet Ian McMillan working with people with dementia and their partners who are part of Age UK Exeter’s Budding Friends...
Dementia-friendly Red Coat guided tours of Exeter look set to be introduced in the city.
The tours are just one of a whole raft of measures being introduced by Exeter City Council as it strives to help people living with the condition.
More than 180 taxi drivers in Exeter have now received dementia-awareness training from the City Council as part of the wide-reaching initative.
As more and more people are being diagnosed with dementia, the City Council has once again revealed its commitment to the challenges faced by arguably the biggest health crisis facing the UK...
The University of Exeter Medical School has been confirmed as a full partner of Dementias Platform UK (DPUK), a partnership of leading universities and prominent industry names striving for better research in dementia.
DPUK is a public-private partnership funded by the Medical Research Council. It aims to bring together researchers from universities and industry to develop effective treatments for dementia.
Exeter is the latest of several academic partners to join the prestigious list, which includes the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh and King’s College London...
An innovative new specialist dementia service to help sufferers live a better quality of life for longer has been launched in South Devon. The Ness Centre, in Teignmouth, helps people stay independent for as long as possible by combining research-based cognitive and physical activities with social interaction and technology. Run by Atlas Respite and Therapy (Art) the purpose-designed centre also provides respite, reassurance and teaching for families and carers. It is the only day care dementia service in Devon using the pioneering Dutch model of specialist meeting centres to manage the...
A retired pottery shop owner with early Alzheimer’s disease has said research has given him a new hope for life.
Eighty-year-old Martin Wallis, from Honiton, is currently taking part in a clinical trial at Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust.
The study, being supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in the South West, the research arm of the NHS, is one of many being carried out locally looking to halt the progression of dementia, the biggest killer in the UK.
Before joining the study last summer Martin said he was unable to read or...
Passionate volunteers in Exeter are being asked to come forward to help form a new fundraising group to support Alzheimer’s Research UK.
The UK’s leading dementia research charity is looking for people with a range of skills to help set up the group, which aims to raise vital funds and awareness across the region.
Members can get involved in a variety of ways, from getting stuck into fundraising challenges that raise money for pioneering research, to representing Alzheimer’s Research UK at events and spreading the word about the charity within their local communities....
Research at the University of Exeter designed to help identify patients with dementia and reduce the pressure on health services has received a generous boost of £120,000 from the Halpin Trust.
The research aims to help GPs make a swifter and more accurate decisions around diagnosis, meaning those who are in greatest need can be progressed more swiftly.
Timely diagnosis is key to ensuring people with dementia get the right treatment and support. Although more than 800,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with dementia, many more are never diagnosed, or are diagnosed too late...
