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SupportCARE

SupportCARE – Support Informal Caregivers for Better Future of Dementia Patients

The project aims to empower and support informal carers of people with dementia and to break the stigma around dementia.

Grant Agreement Number: 2022-1-DE02-KA220-ADU-000088989

Funded by: Erasmus+      Duration: 01/11/2022 – 31/10/2024


Challenge

According to WHO, dementia currently affects around 10 million people in the European Region, and its prevalence is expected to double by 2030. Increasing understanding of the experience of dementia is crucial to meet the dementia challenge of an aging population. Generally, care for people with dementia can be organized in inpatient and outpatient care structures. However, in the European Union, 60% of care is provided by informal carers, who play a central role in the provision of long-term care in Europe. Yet, despite the heavy price they often pay in their own health and economic status, they remain in the blind spot. Being a carer may involve considerable physical, psychological, economic and domestic challenges. Such challenges and stresses, sometimes called carer burden, can affect aspects of carers’ wellbeing; they may feel isolated and lack time to reflect on their own needs and regain energy. It may also affect their own health, resulting in fatigue, sleeping problems, weight loss, depression, anxiety and an increased risk of death.

Innovation

SupportCARE was born as an opportunity to empower and support informal carers of people with dementia and to break the stigma around dementia. Its aim is to empower and support informal carers of dementia patients, and offer them the tools and knowledge to prevent negative impacts on their own health and well-being. The innovative aspect of the project is that for the first time an Erasmus project dealing with dementia is going to deploy simulation-based education and Virtual Reality elements in training and upskilling informal carers.

Action

This action involves the development of an innovative “Self-care workbook” about the importance of self-care, with tools, tips and examples on exercising self-care, to support caregivers’ process towards “Building their own self-care plan” and improved mental and physical health. This open online workbook has a step-by-step approach within the framework of 7 topics: 1) what is self-care and why it’s important (2) taking care of physical self-care, (3) taking care of psychological and emotional self-care, (4) taking care of social self-care, (5) taking time for leisure, and (6) taking care of spiritual self-care 7) building own self-care plan. It will be available in 6 languages (EN, IT, GR, BE, SI, DE).

Five “Self-care days” organized (one in each partner country) to promote self-care, presenting the workbook, addressing the topics of self-care, and collecting feedback.

Partners will develop a training for informal caregivers who take care of dementia patients with the overall aim of making the caregiver more confident about his own abilities. The training also aims to reduce the caregiver’s anxiety, stress and helps to create better social relations with the care receiver. The training will be based on virtual learning (e.g. e-learning), simulation techniques, immersive experience combined with an interactive reflection on the experience.

An awareness raising campaign will be designed and implemented, targeting the general public and aiming to reduce stigma towards people with dementia and their carers based on positive intergroup contact with them. More specifically, the project will develop a hybrid awareness raising campaign which aims to implement initiatives to allow lay-public to have a direct experience / contact with persons with dementia and their carers with the goal to decrease stigmatization.

European Commission’s support for the production of this content does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Project Partners

KMOP – Social Action and Innovation Centre (Greece)
Behörde für Arbeit, Soziales, Familie und Integration (Germany)
Anziani E Non Solo (Italy)
VIVES (Belgium)
DEVELOPMENT CENTRE OF THE HEART OF SLOVENIA (Slovenia)

 

 

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