Loud banging, foot pain, and flashes of light - my eight minutes as a dementia patientEmily Ford/Stuff Make Moments is an arts-based programme engaging with people who have dementia. READ MORE:* Helping the community deal with dementia* Dementia becoming the world's most significant health challengeI knew what was happening in the larger sense: I was at Brightview West End, a senior living facility in Maryland, US participating in a training session for caregivers of dementia patients. Sarah L. Voisin Brightview West End resident assistant Hannah Asuakyi, left, begins her virtual dementia tour by listening to instructions from Albina Misini. The Virtual Dementia Tour, which has trained people at thousands of facilities across the United States, aims to increase empathy for dementia patients by showing them what it feels to walk in their shoes - their painful, destabilising shoes. "Once the headphones are on, you won't be able to ask any questions," said Albina Misini, director of Brightview West End's dementia care section, as she placed them on my head.

Source: Stuff December 26, 2017 04:37 UTC