By MARY KAYE FALCONY
A PLACE FOR ALL
In today’s world, I think we would be hard-pressed to find someone who is not familiar with dementia – or whose life has not been touched in some way by a diagnosis of dementia. Even though this may be the case, there is still much that we must consider in our communities –including our parish communities – for those with dementia and those who care for them.
In 1983, President Ronald Regan instituted the observance of Alzheimer’s awareness and Brain Awareness Month. There are now two months for this observance; June is for Dementia Awareness and all that falls under that umbrella and Alzheimer’s Awareness (the most common type of dementia) in November. Through this effort, many of us now have an understanding and recognition of the various types of dementia that exist and the care one may require with this diagnosis – as well as how we may support all those who make this journey with their loved ones.
It is now estimated that there are approximately six million individuals living with dementia in our nation. As a result, it is very likely that we have parishioners living with this reality. If this is, in fact, the case, we must be open to find ways to walk with these individuals; ways that will provide support through referrals of resources and consistent accompaniment. We must also understand the needs of those who are providing care (care partners) because over 80% of Americans living with dementia live at home.
One of the ways I would like to offer for our parish communities to become more knowledgeable about this disease and acquire dementia-friendly practices is to encourage the viewing of Dementia Friends Indiana @https://www.dementiafriendsindiana.org/become-a-friend/watch-video/.
This 40-minute video comes with a downloadable workbook which allows an interactive aspect to the experience and gives you printable material to refer back to. If there is a group at your parish that would like to do this training in person you may want to contact SWIRCA https://swirca.org/dementia-friends/to see if there are Dementia Friends Champions (trainers) available in our local community.
Many of us who have journeyed with a loved one through dementia will tell you how important it is to be met with compassion, understanding and support. Being met with hospitality at our parishes is a wonderful gift we can offer to those who often may feel isolated and alone in the midst of significant life changes they are trying to navigate. We as a community may pray to St. Dymphna the patroness of those who suffer from nervous and mental afflictions to intercede on behalf of all those living with a dementia diagnosis.