Images of footballers can serve as a trigger for conversation and reminisence among male dementia patients. Photograph: Scott Heppell/APA dementia care unit is being built close to Sunderland football club's Stadium of Light. The Roker ward – named after the club's former ground Roker Park – at Monkwearmouth hospital, will provide 14 beds for men aged over 65.
The new unit will replace a ward in Cherry Knowle hospital in Ryhope, which has passed its sell-by date. The ward at Cherry Knowle has been trialling sport as a focus for reminiscence therapy and the results were good enough to convince the ward managers that this was something that should be adopted in the new building.
Finding meaningful ways to connect and engage with dementia patients is always challenging. Football provides an alternative focus for men who are reluctant to join in other group and reminiscence based activities. Memories of players, matches and sports events from 30, 50 or 60 years ago can remain clear when prompted. The Sporting Memories Network travelled to Ryhope and worked with ward staff, giving them ideas about how they could use images of famous footballers and sports stars from days gone by as a trigger for conversation, debate and reminiscence. Those debates and discussions often focus on recalling favourite players, great victories, away trips and the inevitable defeats.
"It's often difficult to engage older men in meaningful activities," says ward manager Geoff Willis. "But using sporting memories as a framework has worked for us, most clients are keen to share their memories about football. They become animated and passionate and have so much to tell you.
"We held themed events over the summer; we had a Royal Ascot afternoon with form guides, betting slips and refreshments which saw patients placing fun bets for chocolates. And we also hosted a Wimbledon-themed day to coincide with the men's singles finals with all the trimmings including strawberries and cream.
"Events like this have impressed relatives. They have commented on how animated their loved ones became on these special afternoons."
The Sporting Memories Network ensures that new materials are made available on a regular basis to keep the sessions and conversations fresh. That's where we hit on the idea of publishing a weekly reminiscence newspaper.
A couple of weeks ago one of the very last Saturday night sports papers published its final printed version in Sheffield before moving to a digital platform. Going out to buy the Pink'un or Green'un on a Saturday evening was a tradition for sports fans across the country for many years. So we supply dementia wards with (our version of) the Sporting Pink, which is filled with archive sporting images and match reports for the staff to use for reminiscence.
Dr Michael Clark from the Personal Social Services Research Unit at LSE evaluated a pilot project the Sporting Memories Network ran across care homes in Leeds. His report noted a positive impact not only on the wellbeing of residents but also on the staff, as they too enjoyed hearing about great football games of the past. The pilot was funded by a Skills for Care workforce development innovation fund grant and attracted the support of local clubs and organisations but also came to the attention of the government. The network's work with football and sports clubs was mentioned in the first annual report on the prime minister's dementia challenge.
Sports stars including Chris Kamara, Robbie Savage, David Coulthard and Ross Brawn have shared some of their own favourite memories and have been joined by celebrities, fans and professional bodies such as the Professional Footballers' Association and British Racing Drivers' Club in supporting the network. The bank of memories shared is then used by staff facilitating sports reminiscence activities.
Tony Jameson-Allen is a director of the Sporting Memories Network, a community interest company established to develop reminiscence activities that improve the wellbeing of older people and those living with dementia through tapping into the passion, knowledge and love of sport.
This article is published by Guardian Professional. Join the Healthcare Professionals Network to receive regular emails and exclusive offers.
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