I often describe dementia as a thief as it robs people of their memories, drains their self-confidence, and steals their ability to fully express their own emotions. It is a terrible disease, and I am passionate that Suffolk County Council will continue to do all we can to support and help people living with dementia and their families.
I want, therefore, to reflect upon an event I attended during Dementia Action Week, encourage you to do something practical to help people with dementia by submitting your ideas for stories for our Virtual Reality project, and take a moment to celebrate the 75th Birthday of the NHS and Social Care.
The Dementia Marketplace Drop-in Event was held at Trinity Park outside Ipswich on 16th May, and was an opportunity for people living with dementia, their families, and carers to drop in and discover what support is available to them in Suffolk. I was honoured to be joined by Dr Roz Tandy from the NHS to open the event. Representatives from 34 care organisations set up information stalls for people, whilst at the same time speakers gave talks and presentations covering a wide range of topics including how to live well with Dementia, to the importance of getting an early diagnosis.
Over 145 people dropped in over the course of the day, and their response was overwhelmingly positive, specifically around the wide range of support available and how the close working partnerships in Suffolk, especially between health and social care, is already making things easier for people to find and access the right support. Events like this, and the recent report from Healthwatch, help the Dementia Action Partnership, which is co-chaired by Suffolk County Council, to work with providers and people with dementia and their families, to co-produce the upcoming Dementia Strategy for Suffolk. I offer my thanks to the Dementia Action Partnership and Care Development East for hosting and arranging this year's event, they have created a great foundation to build future events upon.
As part of Suffolk County Council’s ongoing commitment to providing dementia support, a competition was launched earlier this year to develop life-changing Virtual Reality films to help those living with the disease. This follows the council investing £80,000 to develop a bespoke VR app, to be called Reverie, based on over 10 years of clinical research which have demonstrated the diverse benefits for this technology for people with dementia. I got to experience an early version of the new VR app at the Dementia Marketplace event, it was an amazing experience for me, and really helped me understand how sights and sounds presented in this way can unlock feelings, emotions, and memories.
Anyone is welcome to enter the competition, including people living with dementia themselves and their carers. Entrants do not need to be experienced in film production and only need to submit a simple storyboard outlining the concept of their VR film. By entering, you're joining a movement that seeks to make the lives of people living with dementia better. Through virtual reality films based on local stories about Suffolk, they’ll experience new environments, relive memories, and engage with the world in new ways, helping to reduce feelings of isolation and improve their overall well-being. I urge you to please get involved and give us your stories. You can find out more by visiting www.vrchallengeuk.co.uk/competition
Finally, this week the entire country is going to be celebrating the 75th birthday of the NHS and by extension the social care system too. Since its foundation 75 years ago, the NHS has gone on to serve and care for almost a million patients every day. From Europe's first liver transplant in 1968, to delivering the world's first accredited COVID19 vaccine in 2020 - the NHS has continued to evolve and adapt to best care for the needs of the people of this country and beyond. I am proud of the NHS and confident that the Health and Social Care system will continue to grow in strength, empowered by closer integration, working hard to address health inequalities, planning services to better meet the needs of local people, and designing new proactive forms of care to improve the lives of people today and into the future.
Happy Birthday NHS - and thank you to everyone, past and present, who work tirelessly every day to care and look after us, often when we are at our most vulnerable.
