Dementia and diversity

These resources will help you with understanding some of the particular difficulties and issues that can be faced by people with dementia and their carers from diverse groups, and will provide guidance on implementing appropriate support and care.

In other sections of the website you can also:

familiarise yourself with the UK national strategies and standards
develop your skills and knowledge with resources designed for learning
find details of key agencies and networks.

Some of these resources are in PDF format - see how to access PDF files.

Alzheimer’s Society: Publications in different languages
The Society has a number of publications in different languages. They are arranged by language.

Alzheimer’s Society: LGBT support and advice
The Society provides support and advice for people with dementia who are members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) community. Resources includes a number of factsheets looking at some of the issues gay and lesbian people with dementia face and ways in which they can be supported. The factsheets are:

Bradford Metropolitan District Council (2011) Caring for dementia: exploring good practice supporting South Asian carers through access to culturally competent service provision
This guidance document produced with the support of a number of organisations, looks at the role of caring in the context of the South Asian community. It discusses some of the difficulties and barriers experienced by BME carers of people with dementia and how the cultural context can influence interactions with outside agencies and views of statutory service providers. The guide describes aspects of the culture that service providers need to take into account and some of the factors that need to be considered when providing culturally appropriate care. The resource is made available on the Meri Yaadain website.

Dementia advocacy network (DAN): Ethnic minority dementia advocacy project (EMDAP)
DAN was funded for three years by the Department of Health for this project to explore the needs for support through independent advocacy of black and minority ethnic people with dementia. The project worked with advocacy providers raising awareness of diverse cultures and exploring barriers they experience in accessing services. The project also did considerable work "with a wide variety of minority ethnic communities, making contact with community leaders, providing dementia awareness sessions for community groups and opening up discussions about a subject that was not often talked about or understood".

For the final report of the project published in 2009 see: Bringing dementia out of the shadows for BME elders: a report on the work of the Ethnic Minorities Dementia Advocacy Project (Emdap) (PDF 1.82MB).

Outcomes of the project are:

Good practice guidelines
This offers guidance, based on the project and discussions in networking events, on the role of advocates in supporting people with dementia.
Bringing dementia out of the shadows for BME Elders (PDF 2.82MB)
A leaflet summarising the project, what the barriers for BME elders and their families are, and what service providers need to consider.

Institute for Public Policy Research (2011) Dementia care in London
This publication from the IPPR focuses on some of the unique challenges that London faces in supporting an ageing population and increasing numbers of elderly people with dementia. It includes projections about the impact of dementia in older black and minority ethnic (BME) Londoners and the challenges faced by many London boroughs in providing services for harder to reach groups. The report also highlights the greater risks of misdiagnosis and delayed treatment amongst some minority ethnic groups. A series of recommendations are made around commissioning and service provision.

Meri Yaadain project
The project aims to raise awareness of dementia in the South Asian communities in Bradford and to help those who have dementia and their carers understand the condition and seek appropriate support and advice.

SCIE Research briefing 35 (2011) Black and minority ethnic people with dementia and their access to support
This briefing discusses the barriers currently faced by BME people in accessing dementia care services and some of the ways in which services can become better at responding to the needs of BME people in their locality.

SCIE Dementia Gateway case study: The power of culture
“Based on what we know about Asian communities and dementia, it is quite possible that problems related to caring for a person with dementia remain hidden because of the pressure to adhere to family roles”…. “Working with the whole family unit brought about significant changes for Chan Singh, a Sikh man with dementia, and Kiran, his daughter-in-law and main carer”.

SCIE: Seldom-heard groups
This resource raises awareness of seldom-heard or ‘hard to reach’ groups generally and emphasises the need to be inclusive and ensure these groups are not marginalised in the provision and delivery of any care services.