NATIONWIDE Building Society is working in partnership with Dementia UK, a specialist dementia nursing charity, to provide a free, face-to-face clinic in Wokingham this January.
Hosted by Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurses, the clinic is open to anyone impacted by dementia, offering specialist support to families and individuals in a safe, comfortable and private space.
Confidential appointments, held in the Nationwide Wokingham branch, will offer practical and emotional advice on all aspects of dementia, from concerns about symptoms to getting a diagnosis and understanding how the condition can progress.
“We’re looking forward to returning to Berkshire to offer support and advice to families affected by dementia,” said admiral nurse Sarah Cooper.
“Our clinic programme, in partnership with Nationwide Building Society, has now been running for over a year, enabling us to reach thousands of people across the country.”
Dementia is often associated with memory problems, forgetfulness, and getting lost in familiar places, and this is indeed one of the symptoms.
However, the first indications of dementia are not always memory-related, so Dementia UK highlights several other important warning signs to be aware of.
Changes in cognitive ability, such as difficulty in making decisions, losing interest in hobbies, and experiencing problems understanding time, is another common symptom, as is a difficulty in communication, which can show itself as struggling to find words, rambling, and misnaming things and people.
Further, a person with dementia may undergo personality changes, and become agitable, impulsive, or restless to the point of being socially inappropriate or even violent.
These are common signals, but the signs of dementia differ from person to person.
There can be challenges to receiving a diagnosis, such as denial or reluctance to visit a doctor, but Dementia UK urges anyone concerned about having symptoms of dementia to book an appointment with their GP as soon as possible.
The Wokingham clinic is part of Nationwide’s social impact strategy, Fairer Futures, which addresses four of the UK’s biggest social issues.
The scheme funds 30 dementia specialist Admiral Nurses in clinics at 200 branches across the country.
In addition to combating dementia, the building society partners with Action for Children to tackle family poverty, Centrepoint to address youth homelessness, and The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity to help in the fight against cancer.
“Dementia impacts millions of families and that’s why we’re incredibly proud to have brought life-changing support into 200 of our branches and helped more than 30,000 people through our partnership with Dementia UK,” said Charlotte Kenset, director of customer experience and social impact for Nationwide.
“We believe we have a role to play in strengthening the communities we serve and supporting those most in need.
“Through our social impact strategy, Nationwide Fairer Futures, we’re committed to changing hundreds of thousands of lives for the better.”
The clinic at 10 Broad Street, Wokingham, will be open from Tuesday, January 20 to Thursday, January 22.
For appointments and more information, visit: dementiauk.org/nationwide
