Learn more about being a Dementia Interpreter
The Dementia Interpreter® community edition video online course is exclusive to ProTrainings. To understand what a Dementia Interpreter® is, we need to first understand what the words mean.
Dementia: An umbrella term for over 100 diseases associated with the decline of brain function.
Interpreter: A person that interprets and translates, speech and communication into another language.
Dementia is a word that everyone knows, and for most of us, this word is feared. The major challenge that we have with dementia is that no one is prepared for this disease and most families have no knowledge of it. This lack of knowledge needs to change.
The ‘worldwide’ Dementia Interpreter® network is committed to reconnecting families by teaching them the language of dementia and ensuring that the persons voice is always heard. Sometimes the most obvious change is so simple that we just can’t see it, and this is where the art of dementia conversations is needed.
As the brain loses the ability to speak as it would normally, it will find new ways to compensate and begins to invent a new language. Dementia Interpreters are people that are committed to learning the language of dementia and sharing it. They start their ‘career of speech’ by being placed in the same situation as people with dementia. We take away their ability to speak, see, hear, and use body language so they are forced to find new ways to communicate. They feel firsthand, the isolation, frustration and anxiety experienced by those that have dementia. Communication is at the heart of dementia care and Dementia Interpreters® will help everyone to build the pathway that connects us again to the person.
The Dementia Interpreters® network is built to serve these families in need and is committed to building the world’s first ‘Dementia Dictionary’ that will be freely given to the people we serve via a digital platform. The Dementia Dictionary is the ‘dementia language guidebook’ where people can reference behaviours, actions, noises and body language that have been translated into our language. This will be built only by the whole Dementia Interpreter network and will not be one person’s opinion or viewpoint and therefore will be thorough and continually developing. The Dementia Interpreters® will network and discuss descriptions of behaviours within the Interpreter forum to accurately translate these into the new language and then the answers will be given freely to the world.
Also, the two ladies in the videos have come to our head office and delivered training as well from time to time. They were brilliant. The whole thing was brilliant. Truly made me think, and the way what happened in the exercise was talked through afterwards in great relevant detail."
-Shaun - Cephas Alpha Group