East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust is committed to providing safe, personal and effective care for all people who use our hospital and community health services.
People with Dementia and those affected by the condition access all of our services and it is a priority in the Trust for care to be designed, developed and improved.
Butterfly Scheme
The Butterfly Scheme helps people who are in hospital and who find it hard to remember everything that’s going on. Hospitals can be busy places and we know that can feel overwhelming at times. If desired, a blue butterfly can be ticked above the patient’s bed space to indicate that the person has dementia and may need additional support. A white butterfly can also be ticked above the patient’s bed space if there is no formal diagnosis of dementia, but the person still requires some additional support due to problems affecting cognition like delirium.
In use across all of our inpatient services, the Butterfly Scheme ensures patients receive more effective and appropriate care, reducing their stress levels and increasing their safety and well-being.
Family and Carers of people living with dementia can support staff to enact the butterfly scheme by filling in a person-centred care plan as described in the next section.
Person-centred care plans
At ELHT we advocate the use of person-centred care plans to support the care of people living with a diagnosis of dementia, cognitive impairment or temporary cognitive issues such as delirium. The nationally recognised “This is Me” or locally available “REACH out to Me” helps us to provide a person centred and holistic approach to care. Copies are available in all inpatient clinical areas for family or carers to complete alongside the person. These documents allow our teams to get to know the person and deliver individualised care that meets their needs.
*Please note that these documents are designed to be downloaded, printed and kept and may not be accessible for people using accessibility software.
Hospital car parking
Carers of hospital patients living with dementia who attend the Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital, Clitheroe, Pendle and Accrington Community Hospitals regularly receive a concession on car parking charges.
- Download, print and complete this Form
- Ask a member of the relevant Ward team to sign it
- Take the form to the parking office located close to the main reception
John’s Campaign
John's Campaign is a national campaign supporting the right for the families and carers of people with dementia to stay with them in the hospital for as much as they are needed and as they can give. The campaign also champions the right for people with dementia to be supported by their family carers.
At ELHT, we recognise the value of open visiting for relatives of people living with dementia. As such, all clinical areas across ELHT support John’s Campaign and offer open visiting hours to a maximum of 2 carers at one time to people living with dementia.
We run John’s Campaign in conjunction with Partnership in Care, aiming to improve our delivery of 1:1 care and our partnership working with family and relatives.
Dementia Champions
A Dementia Champion is an identified member of staff who encourages others to make a positive difference to people under our care and living with dementia. They do this by giving information about the personal impact of dementia, and what they can do to help they uphold the Trust initiatives and recommendations of the National Dementia Strategy and Trust strategy and work towards the Dementia Friendly Hospital Charter recommendations.
Dementia Champions are given opportunities for enhanced training with the ELHT Dementia Lead Nurse and kept informed of important dementia updates throughout the trust and the wider region. You can ask to speak with your dementia champion in any clinical area to help support your relative’s care.
Delirium
At ELHT we understand the importance of recognising the symptoms of delirium. People living with dementia are at an increased risk of developing delirium, but this can often be misinterpreted as progression of dementia symptoms. Delirium is a sign that someone is physically unwell. Delirium is also known as being in an ‘acute confusional state’. It is a sudden change over a few hours or days. It affects how alert someone is and their concentration levels. At other times they can seem their normal selves. It is a serious condition that may be associated with poor outcomes. However, it can be prevented and treated if dealt with urgently.
ELHT is introducing a SQID (single question to identify delirium), where every 24 hours, any patient over 18 will be assessed with the question – “is this person more confused or drowsy than usual?”. If answered yes, our existing Delirium Bundle which helps us to diagnose and implement treatment in a safe and timely way to provide effective care will be activated.
We have a Delirium advice leaflet for patients and relatives to give basic information about what delirium is and how to spot the signs and symptoms and prevent further episodes. This is available here to download or physical copies can be obtained from clinical areas. If your relative appears more confused or drowsy than usual, escalate it to a health care professional and we will begin delirium screening.
Twiddle Muffs
Twiddle muffs are knitted gloves with knitted items of interest attached to them to provide simple stimulation for active hands whilst promoting increased flexibility and brain stimulation.
These are kindly donated by members of the public and will be available for staff to access for patients from all reception desks across the trust. These are single person use, so gifted by families to the person with dementia and are encouraged to be taken home at the end of their stay in hospital.