HomeTouch care advice

Here you can read inspiring interviews and interesting articles, access useful tools, and download our latest guides.

/  |  2 min read by Stephen Portlock, January 7, 2019

Tips for talking to people with dementia

Talking to someone with dementia
These tips can help you avoid some of the frustrations and pitfalls of talking to people with dementia, and get the most out of your time together, and ultimately give your loved one the benefits of social interaction. When people with dementia are distressed or anxious, they’re more likely to wander or engage in other …

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 |  4 min read by Dr Jane Gilbert, January 4, 2019

Social interaction and brain health

Social interaction and brain health
Humans are social creatures. We thrive from interaction with people around us. Chatting about our lives, debating current affairs, discussing films and books or gossiping about friends or celebrities, can all spark our interest and fire our imaginations. Human contact doesn’t just feel good, it can also make a difference to our brain health and …

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/  |  3 min read by Stephen Portlock, January 3, 2019

Music therapy and dementia

Music therapy and dementia
You may have seen videos of people in care homes listening to music and being temporarily transformed – previously uncommunicative people start to sing and clap, people with dementia can answer questions they couldn’t before. Clearly there’s something about music that affects the brain in a powerful way. So what is music therapy? Does it …

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/  |  5 min read by Dr Jane Gilbert, December 12, 2018

Hospital discharge planning

hospital discharge advice
Discharge from hospital is a positive step for the patient, but moving from twenty-four-hour care on the ward to the community can be challenging. Careful assessment, planning and communication can ensure care continuity and help the patient recover and adjust to life at home in safety and comfort. Meeting the needs of the patient as …

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/  |  4 min read by Dr Jane Gilbert, December 5, 2018

Sleep, relaxation and brain health

sleep and brain health
Busy lives filled with work stresses and family tensions can make it difficult to get the rest and relaxation we need. It’s easy to focus on keeping our bodies fit and functioning, and neglecting the health of our brains. Brain health isn’t just about emotional wellbeing. It’s about protecting our brains from disease and dementia …

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/  |  2 min read by Dr. Jamie Wilson, December 5, 2018

‘Care Miles can put us back on track’

Dr Jamie from hometouch care miles
As we enter into the winter months, when social care is at its most pressured and we await a drastically overdue Social Care Green Paper from the Government, the debate around how best to secure the future of our care system rages on. We’re proposing a solution – ‘care miles’. Often this debate about social …

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/ /  |  3 min read by Stephen Portlock, December 3, 2018

What is a memory assessment service?

Memory assessment service
At the moment, there’s no cure for dementia – that makes catching it early all the more important. But where does ordinary forgetfulness end and dementia begin? That’s where a memory assessment service comes in. What is a memory assessment service? A memory assessment service (MAS) is a healthcare service with the aim of detecting …

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/ /  |  2 min read by Dr. Jamie Wilson, November 29, 2018

The limitations of dementia testing

The limitations to dementia testing
The recent study published in the BMJ, led by the University of Exeter, has highlighted shortcomings in the tests most commonly used by GPs to diagnose dementia – the Mini-Mental State Examination, Memory Impairment Screen and the Animal Naming test. As many as a third of participants in the study were misdiagnosed by at least …

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