Paarl Rotary’s special Alzheimer’s project, The Labyrinth Circle, has this year held three information sessions for the public presented by DementiaSA and is in the process of rolling out dementia support groups to Rotary clubs in the district.
The sessions, presented by Phazisa Mbilini (social worker of DementiaSA) were well attended and highly appreciated by the concerned communities, who were also informed about the support groups founded by our club.
We also presented the movie ‘Human Forever’ in Minimax cinema, with some 100 people present. All were moved by the overview of the treatment of dementia patients around the world. It is not the money spent on care that seems to be important but the real support that comes from human contact.
The Labyrinth Circle also presented its second seminar in Paarl with 15 participants, all of them next-of-kin carers for dementia patients. We had Madelein Duyvehaeghe explaining what dementia or cognitive impairment is. Yolande Brandt animated the session with the first chapter of the book Dementia and Now? and Rayne Stroebel presented an excellent session about living with a dementia patient.
Again we brought the participants together in the Labyrinth Circle and all are very motivated by the support of people in similar situations. Two sessions were recorded on video, to use for the other sessions in rolling out the support groups in the Western Cape.
All clubs of the Western Cape are given the opportunity to organize a seminar for the ‘mantelzorger’, the family member taking care of a dementia patient. RC Paarl takes charge of the speakers, the secretariat of the seminar, the handbook, etc.
The organising club takes care of the venue, the 15 participants, the marketing of the seminar, and a social worker to assist the participants during the seminar if necessary. More importantly her task could also be the creation,with the participants, of a peer group that will continue to meet after the seminar.
RC Paarl now has two Labyrinth Circle groups which give all participants real support and hope in the daily care provided by the relative of the patient (mantelzorger).
Our objective is to present 10 seminars all over District 9350. The first bookings have already been received.
For more information contact Rudy Dupont at 083 388 7085 or rudy.dupont@telenet.be.
Dementia is increasing and will double in the next 20 years. An award-winning documentary film on this topic, “Human Forever”, was screened at the Minimax bioscope in Paarl by Paarl Rotary on 24 April.