DementiaRoadmap

Engage & Create is a not-for-profit organisation that uses creativity and conversation to improve the quality of life for people with dementia and those that care for them.

Engage & Create runs the Ignite Programme which offers a complete package of training, resources and support to help organisations provide specialist cognitively stimulating activity for people with dementia.

Created with the help of people with dementia, the programme improves wellbeing and helps people remain mentally active.

Ignite Sessions involve people in structured art appreciation discussions and offer a safe space for people to express their views and beliefs enabling participation in a meaningful, intellectual activity and opportunity for personal growth.

Ignite Sessions are a forum for exploration and exchange of ideas without relying on short-term memory. It encourages an opportunity to share personal experiences and access long-term memories that otherwise may not be stimulated. Participants benefit from a new insight into others’ ideas and interests, and also a means to make connections between individual experience and the world at large.

The short video below introduces the Ignite Programme.

Previous art knowledge is not required by either the facilitator or participant. The facilitator is a tour guide around the artworks, allowing each participant to react and contribute to the conversation.

Done on a tablet computer these sessions are very flexible – a 15 minute quick chat with one or two people or a full hour session. They can be conducted at the bedside for those unable to join a group activity and can be tailored from early cognitive impairment through to end of life.

Delivered through the Montessori approach focusing on individual’s strengths and abilities, this positive approach to dementia care is a source of creativity and comfort to people with dementia and caregivers alike. As well as a great learning experience, these sessions are a fun, friendly and creative way to have social interaction and connect to peers and can be delivered at every stage of dementia.

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