Namaste Care Training Programme 2018 – Information Sheet
Dates Sept 26th, Oct 10th (placement date tbc) and Dec 12th 2018
Namaste is a Hindu term meaning to ‘honour the spirit within’. Namaste Care™ is a systematic, multi-sensory,spiritual care programme for people with advanced dementia who have become socially withdrawn and unable to benefit from usual social and group activities.Research evidence demonstrating the positive impact of Namaste Care™ is beginning to emerge. Benefits may include increased social interaction, nutritional intake, and interest in surroundings along with decreased agitation and a subsequent reduction in the need for anti-anxiety medication. Namaste Care™ is typically offered in a group setting but can be transferred to the bedside as a person nears the end-of-life.
The four day experientialNamaste Care™ training programme is open to anyone working with people who are living/dying with dementia. Participants are offered a range of learner-centred opportunities over three days at ACCORD Hospice Resource Centreincluding: case study discussions, mindful awareness exercises, reflective group work and practical demonstrations. Participants are also offered aday of placement in a working Namaste Care™ room to experience the programme in action.
Feedback from previous participants suggests that the training programmeis‘informative’, ‘truly enlightening’, ‘calming… rejuvenating’ and ‘inspiring’. Participants have also noticed changes in their attitudes and behaviour during the training programme. For example:
‘promoting comfort and connection through intentional presence has really inspired me to embrace quieter moments – sometimes less is more’; and ‘taking time with residents on placement and all the different things I learned helped me take it back to my own place of work and carry it out there’ and; ‘I put Namaste Care™ in place for a gentleman who was for end-of-life care and from being agitated and unsettled he became calm and reassured - and his family felt a sense of relief, which supported them’.
One family member, who had been coached in the practice of Namaste Care™ by a course participant, reported that she was:
‘hugely thankful for the skills passed on to me from the Namaste training…they helped me connect and communicate with Mum…it made a massive difference to me, giving me purpose, confidence and skills to bring comfort to Mum lying in her bed as she was dying.’
Research suggests that there areconcerns about the quality of spiritual care and support routinely available to people with dementia, in all care settings, as they move toward death. The four day experiential Namaste Care™ training programme aims to bridge that gap by supporting staff to recognise the importance of spiritual needs, including the need for connection, inclusion, respect, compassion, meaning, belonging and purpose. It then empowers staff to tailor a range of multi-sensorial activities to meaningfully engage with the person with dementia, to respect their personhood, and to promote quality of life till the very end of life.
Places are limited to 20. To make inquiries/book contact