The impacts of COVID-19 on Valley residents suffering with dementia are numerous, according to Danielle Mulvihill of the Ottawa and Renfrew County Dementia Society.
Mulvihill says this is no textbook study- the Society is getting real-time feedback from the caregivers of four thousand dementia victims in the organization’s catchment area.
The Ottawa and Renfrew County Dementia Society spokesperson says her group has come up with a remedy called, “Make a Connection, Take a Break” which allows the caregiver and/or dementia patient to reach out for a text chat or old-fashioned phone call, to engage in dialogue and offer strategies to cope with the enforced isolation COVID requires.
More details can be accessed at dementiahelp.ca
The program is also available to residents within the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark Health Unit jurisdiction.