Why This Blog

My father has dementia.  That saddens me of course; it also engrosses and challenges me, personally and professionally.  I intend to follow his progress through this blog, but also as I do to explore related ideas about memory, the meaning of personhood, about getting old and - let's face it - dying. 

There are two other things you need to know at the outset.  First, I'm a mental health chaplain.  I am employed by the NHS but that's as much as I can disclose. I'll be reflecting on my experiences with patients, carers and staff whom I meet in the course of my work, but I'll mention no names or specific locations.  Any names I do use will be made up.  My prime directive is to provide spiritual care, and while the meaning of that phrase is something we continually ponder both as a chaplaincy team and within the wider Trust, which takes it more seriously than many, it's taken on a different aspect now.  I can feel already that the way I do my theology will be challenged as I watch and sometimes accompany Dad on his journey "into that good night".

Second, I'm a musician.  Strictly amateur, but versatile and experienced: I get both my love of music and my aptitude from Dad.  Something I do through my work, and hope I may develop as a specialism, is to encourage older patients to sing.  This leads me to think about why music matters to people, especially when their minds have stopped working properly and their memories are in pieces: but it does, and how.  People with dementia may not be able to speak, but they can sing; or if they can't sing, they can dance, rattle a bit of percussion, or tap their feet.  When you can't get them to respond to music at all, even with encouragement, they really are far gone.

I'll feed in and comment on stories from the media as they crop up, reflect on policy issues, and no doubt sound off against spending constraints "as time goes by"  - that song again.  But enough, let's get started.  It is, as the saying goes, always later than you think.