Dementia care: involving people in Alzheimer’s cafes

An Alzheimer’s Café is a monthly social gathering in a friendly café-like atmosphere where anyone interested in dementia, especially people with dementia and their carers, can meet. In addition to offering a social outing, this group intervention also provides a structured programme of education and information about dementing illnesses and various types of support. This article explains how Alzheimer’s Cafés are hosted, and how care home staff are involved in them. Alzheimer’s Cafés follow a set routine and are structured around an annual programme of themed topics. The topics broadly follow the course of a dementing illness and explore issues relating to the emotional aspects of having dementia and caring for a person with dementia. The overall atmosphere is one of safety, in the presence of others who understand about dementia, so that no one need be embarrassed. Managers and staff from care homes assist at Alzheimer’s Cafés and this can be good advertising for a care home or service.