Irene’s story

mlf_admin 05 / 12 / 2019
irene

“It gives me topics to talk about with Irene, the information I need to do my job well…I know her better…..”

When we met Irene, she was already living in St Mary’s Residential Care Home in South West London and her dementia had progressed to mid-stage. This meant her care workers sometimes struggled to communicate with her and give her the high-quality care they wanted to, particularly within the constraints of a heavy workload and limited contact time with each resident.

Her care worker Betty told us, “The only thing I knew about Irene was what she had said and what the care workers had briefly told me. Unfortunately, on a day-to-day basis, we don’t get time to interact for too long with a person about themselves and their past. It’s more about the practical demands of day-to-day care.”

Once our filmmaker had created the Film Package with Irene, there was an immediate impact on her quality of care. Betty says, “Having the film was so enlightening about what her life had been like…they’re a benefit to carers because you see them as a different person.” Another care worker, Sonja, says, “It gives me topics to talk about with Irene, the information I need to do my job well…I know her better.”

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