The Alzheimer Scotland Centre for Policy and Practice (ASCPP) has launched its Annual Celebration Report to showcase the work of the Centre and celebrate outstanding dementia care during the pandemic.  The ASCPP is led by Professor Debbie Tolson, one of our SDRC Executive Committee members and led of the Living with Dementia Theme.

Pandemic restrictions mean we are unable to host our usual named celebration lecture, so instead this year’s report shares inspirational stories about excellence and innovative dementia related practice during the lockdown period. All of the practitioners and teams celebrated in the report are students, former students or ASCPP Associates.

Those recognised in the report include:

Louise Colquhoun, Dementia Champion, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde – for her use of technology to connect and reunite a wife with her husband, whom she hadn’t seen due to coronavirus restrictions.

Abbotsford Care Home Management Team – for their person-centred approach to supporting residents during the pandemic, including the creation and sharing of resources across the sector to promote good practice.

Betty Scholes, Programme Leader, BSc Mental Health Nursing, UWS – for her leading role played in supporting the mobilisation of student nurses to support NHS Scotland during the pandemic.

Mairi Louise Houldsworth, Nurse and Dementia Champion – for her return to the NHS after retirement to support NHS Scotland throughout the pandemic, and for her continued activism around many dementia causes, campaigns and initiatives.

Margaret Callaghan, Nurse and Dementia Champion – for her management of a care home in England throughout the pandemic; keeping residents safe and in touch with their friends and family. Leaving behind her own family for much of the pandemic.

William McLoughlan, Nurse and Dementia Specialist Improvement Lead – for his leadership skills and application of learning into practice including the Care Empathia approach pioneered by the ASCPP.

Karen Mellon, Lead Podiatrist, Dementia Champion and Dementia Specialist Improvement Lead – for her instrumental role in setting the podiatry profession’s direction on dementia and for developing the Near Me resource to support remote consultations during the pandemic.

The report also focuses on the work and achievements of ASCPP staff and students throughout 2020, summarised in the infographic below. You can find out more and read the report here.