Tipperary hospice service to bring dementia simulator to local Tipperary town

Home Instead Tipperary is set to introduce an innovative approach to CAREGiver training with the arrival of an immersive dementia bus near its office in Thurles next week.

This state-of-the-art mobile simulator will provide CAREGivers, and Care Managers with a first-hand experience of what it is like to live with dementia.

Participants will be able to see, feel, and hear what the world might be like for a person living with dementia through the use of specially designed equipment, which will impair their physical and sensory abilities.

A highly visual and aural experience, those taking part wear goggles, headphones and spiky insoles.

They are then asked to perform everyday tasks but with distorted vision, loud noises and sensory overload which replicate the sensory changes associated with dementia, causing difficulty and distress.

"We are excited to introduce the immersive dementia bus as a valuable tool for CAREGiver training," said Sue Coppinger, Interim General Manager at Home Instead Tipperary.

"On top of their existing training, the dementia bus experience allows CAREGivers to further understand how it feels to live with dementia, helping to ensure we continue to deliver the best quality care to our clients."

The immersive experience provided by the dementia bus will complement the in-house training and City & Guilds Accredited Dementia Training already offered by Home Instead.

This virtual tour is delivered on a state-of-the art mobile simulator, widely referred to as the dementia bus, and participants will spend time experiencing the world in the same way that a person living with dementia might.

The tour is backed up by scientific and medical evidence, which proves that there is simply no better way of understanding what it might be like to live with dementia.

For more information, contact Home Instead Tipperary on 0504 91100