South Brisbane Seventh-day Adventist church was the first church in Australia of any denomination to be recognised by Dementia Australia as a dementia-friendly organisation.1
What is a dementia-friendly organisation and why would we want to become one?
In a dementia-friendly community, people living with dementia and their family care partners are respected, supported and empowered. Dementia-friendly communities are vital to reduce the risk of social isolation of people living with dementia and support them to remain engaged for as long as possible, empowering them to continue using their innate skills and those developed through life experience. A dementia-friendly organisation helps the broader community become more dementia friendly.
The motivation for us to become dementia friendly—in fact, all of our efforts to make our church better for those with disabilities, and other community support activities that we do—stems from Jesus’ story of the sheep and the goats. Our conversion and walk with God are evidenced by how we treat those who are less fortunate than us (Matthew 25:31-46).
This is the motivation behind my passion to see our Adventist churches, conferences, schools and other organisations become more dementia friendly; and as a light and example to other places of worship, whatever denomination or religion.
What are we currently doing and planning?
Our church currently has people living with dementia and their family care partners involved in the church music program. One of our worship teams consists of people living with dementia and a family care partner. Other roles in our church that people with dementia fill include: a member of the cashier team; part of the child safety team; and signing off for the board on risk assessments.
Having a person with dementia performing these important roles is possible because we support them. Not all people with dementia would be able to perform these roles—in fact many without dementia may not have the necessary skills. However, if people living with dementia have these God-given skills, we believe in encouraging them to continue contributing to our church ministry, with any support required, for as long as possible.
We are currently looking at improving our built environment to make it safer for people with dementia. We’ve added larger signs for toilet visibility. We are gradually changing the font size in our overheads for singing, to make it easier for people with dementia to read. We’re endeavouring to eliminate or mark any trip hazards, for instance adding visibility tape in doorways coming from the breezeway at a slightly different height. We have introduced male and female greeters so that someone of the same sex is available to take people to the toilet if they are confused about where to go.
We have plans well underway to provide fortnightly dementia support sessions for people living with dementia and their family care partners. We will include singing, craft and other activities. Other long-term plans are to help our congregation, including children and youth, understand more about dementia; and to formally offer support to family care partners.
What steps did we take to become an officially recognised dementia-
friendly organisation?
We started by having our church board become Dementia Friends. I attended the beginning of an online board meeting and presented the Dementia Friend session. It is great to have people in the church body interested in helping those with dementia and their family care partners. However, you’ll get a more effective result if the church board is committed. The Dementia Friend session involves watching a 15-minute video developed by Dementia Australia. People come away from watching it more aware of how living with dementia impacts a person’s life, and it allows you to walk in their shoes.
Several board members at this session became passionate about helping people with dementia.
The first activity we did as a church was to organise a dementia awareness program on a Sabbath afternoon open to the community. I asked the community development officer for Dementia-Friendly Communities Program, Queensland, to assist me with this. I also asked two dementia advocate couples from the community who I knew. The program was well attended by church members and many from the community (some who travelled significant distances).
I also presented a dementia awareness workshop series in the afternoon adult workshops at the South Queensland Big Camp in 2022 and by request again in 2023.
In 2022, I did this in conjunction with another church member who was then working for Dementia Australia. I also invited the Queensland Dementia-Friendly Communities Program coordinator. In 2023, I had several of the previous year attendees and some South Brisbane Adventist church members, who were former family care partners of people with dementia, assisting me.
The Queensland Dementia-Friendly Communities coordinator was so impressed with what we were doing that she talked about it with her interstate equivalents. This led to the establishment of a bimonthly Dementia Friendly Church Network which recently morphed into the Dementia Friendly Faith Network, open to people of all faith backgrounds who want to make their places of worship dementia friendly. At our meetings we support each other and exchange ideas about what has worked for us.
Our next step was to do an environmental audit of our church building looking for ways we can improve it to make it safer for people living with dementia. The audit team included a person living with dementia and a family care partner. We are gradually implementing the improvements identified. Permanent improvements will be done when modifications are needed such as replacing toilet seats with coloured ones when renovations are undertaken. However, improvements can be made cheaply in the meantime, eg laminated printed toilet signs and coloured contact panels behind toilets for visibility. Depth perception is one of the challenges facing people living with dementia—these coloured contrast panels behind toilets and visibility tape across doorways help with this.
A lot of difficulties can be mitigated by church members becoming more dementia aware and supporting each other. For example, we have congregation members keyed up when we divide for foot washing to invite a person living with dementia who may seem confused by taking them to the correct location.
What can you do to make your church or organisation more dementia friendly?
Dementia-friendly organisations are as unique as their own community. What you choose to do should reflect the needs of the community where you are located, the church and its building. That being said, no community is exempt from having dementia within it. What we have done and are doing are examples you could follow, but you may choose other things if you find they are better for your local church and community.
I believe all churches should start by having church board members becoming Dementia Friends. This can help set the tone for the church.2
Any church programs will need to be approved by the board or a business meeting, and this is easier if the board is committed.
It would be good to see other Adventist churches and organisations recognised as dementia friendly. In addition to the South Brisbane Adventist church, an Anglican church in South Australia, a Catholic Boys school and an Australian university have been awarded dementia-friendly status. The Lutheran Synod in South Australia has agreed to become more dementia friendly.
Even if this formal recognition is not the route you want to take, Jesus’ command in Matthew 25 strongly implies that we should do what we can to make our churches more dementia friendly.
- This is our profile on the Dementia Australia website: dementia.org.au/get-involved/dementia-friendly-communities/dementia-friendly-community-groups/south-brisbane.
- For Australia, contact your Dementia Friendly Communities Program state representative to find a Dementia Friend host who can run this program for you. Email DementiaFriendly@dementia.org.au. This program can be run in person or online. New Zealand has a similar Dementia Friend program run through Alzheimer’s New Zealand. Both have an online program which may be available if you are outside these two countries, and have an internet connection.
If you want to join the Dementia Friendly Faith Network you can email: Liz.Withall@dementia.org.au. More information (Australia): dementia.org.au/get-involved/dementia-friendly-communities/become-dementia-friend, (New Zealand): alzheimers.org.nz/explore/dementia-friendly-nz/become-a-dementia-friend/.
Juanita Hughes is a trained Dementia Friend and member South Brisbane church in Queensland.
