For all of our lives most of us have wanted to be free to make our own decisions, some of them perhaps unwise, and not to be told what to do or be given orders. It is no different if you have dementia. At Wardington House we want to help people to live their lives as they wish.
Our staff are trained to respect and accept a person’s choices. Someone may wake up at six in the morning, have breakfast and go back to bed. They may wake up again at 11.00 o’clock and ask for breakfast again. We may say it will soon be lunchtime, but if it’s breakfast they want then we provide it.
If someone wants to go to bed in their day clothes we will suggest they might be more comfortable in their nightdress, but we will not put pressure on them to conform.
One man used to wake up regularly at 2.00 in the morning and say he was hungry and wanted his favorite meal, a steak and kidney pie. We bought a supply of ready made pies for our staff to heat up for him.
If a family wants to take their relative out for the day, the weekend, or a week on a canal boat, we like to help.
Freedom of choice is at the heart of everything we do.
