Prior to beginning with the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County in January 2013, Milton Fraser served as a minister for the past twenty four years. Throughout his work of leading worship, education and pastoral care, he has journeyed with several folks with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias.
I was recently having lunch with my grandmother and I realized how much she’s changed. She holds her spoon differently, and she uses her fork to painstakingly cut the meat, instead of using the knife. I realized that these changes were brought on by her dementia, but I didn’t really know if there was anything I should do to help.
Lindsay Butcher from the Alzheimer Society of Peel explains how she and her colleagues help people with dementia contribute to mealtime tasks.
A basic list of tax benefits available for people with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias
Dear brother, sister, son, daughter, friend,
I have Alzheimer’s disease.
I know you don’t know what to say, or what you should do.
I don’t have all the answers – but I hope this letter will help.
On March 26, 2013, the Alzheimer Society of Ontario officially launched the Finding Your Way program. This groundbreaking safety initiative is designed to promote awareness about the issue of people with dementia getting lost among the public and law enforcement. In addition, it provides information for caregivers on how to prevent a person with dementia from going missing and what information to have ready in case he or she does.
In my family, we like to joke about how we choose one of two professions – teacher or biologist. My identical twin sister chose teaching, so I chose biology.
If you’ve ever cared for someone with Alzheimer’s disease, you know how difficult night times can be. Despite feeling sleepy all day, he may often sleep in fragmented bursts at night and be prone to getting out of bed several times a night.
As a social worker for the past six years, my passion for developing therapeutic relationships and providing safe spaces for the self-empowerment of individuals and groups has vastly grown. Using creative outlets to build relationships and support empowerment has always been something I was keen on exploring. With this in mind, I decided to become an art therapist through the Toronto Art Therapy Institute.
Home should be a safe place, a refuge from the world where we can simply be and relish in the memories of what was, what is and what will be. Ensuring people with dementia can continue to live safely at home is a key priority for the Alzheimer Society. A home’s many traces of the past can help preserve a sense of self.