Volunteer Training 2016 - Elderly -

Structure of SVS Students Association SRC SSC Convener Development Officer Treasurer Events &Publicity Secretary Technical Officer Project Officers Youth w/ Additional Needs Volunteers Youth Adults w/ Additional Needs Elderly Befriending Animals Environmental

Elderly Projects Balnacarron Care Home St Andrews House Care Home Servite Care Home Servite Bible Group North East Fife Stroke Club Stratheden Elderly Wards

What is volunteering? “A volunteer is someone who, unpaid and of their own free will, contributes their time, energy and skills to benefit people in their community.” - Fife Voluntary Action “Volunteers are the only human beings on the face of the earth who reflect this nations’ compassion, unselfish caring, patience and just plain loving one another.” - Erma Bombeck “Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless” - Sherry Anderson “The broadest, and maybe the most meaningful definition of volunteering: doing more than you have to because you want to, in a cause you consider good.” - Ivan Scheier “Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.” - Unknown

What volunteering means to you? A sentence or two: What volunteering means to you? Why you chose to volunteer? Why you feel volunteers are important? What your expectations of volunteering are?

What is volunteering? “A volunteer is someone who, unpaid and of their own free will, contributes their time, energy and skills to benefit people in their community.” - Fife Voluntary Action “Volunteers are the only human beings on the face of the earth who reflect this nations’ compassion, unselfish caring, patience and just plain loving one another.” - Erma Bombeck “Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless” - Sherry Anderson “The broadest, and maybe the most meaningful definition of volunteering: doing more than you have to because you want to, in a cause you consider good.” - Ivan Scheier “Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.” - Unknown

Rights To know what is expected of you To have clear lines of support and supervision To be given training To be shown appreciation To be free from discrimination To have safe working conditions To have the resources necessary for the projects To reclaim out of pocket expenses To have input in to decision making within the project and SVS To choose your own level of commitment and be able to discontinue volunteering.

Responsibilities To be reliable and honest. To be punctual and regular in attending your project. Respect confidentiality. Attend any relevant training and work within agreed guidelines. Communicate when unable to attend/wishing to leave the project. Seek advice and help when necessary. Take care of personal belongings. Participate in monitoring and evaluation. Not smoke on any SVS project, or consume alcohol prior to or during. Wear appropriate clothing.

Travel expenses

Logging hours

Housekeeping Office Hours Contacts: One off Projects Convener 11:15am-12:15pm, Mondays, Union Main Bar Treasurer 12:15pm-13:15pm, Mondays, Union Main Bar Contacts: Clair Davison (Elderly Project Officer): cd93@st-andrews.ac.uk Sarah Rodway-Swanson (Convener): srs5@st-andrews.ac.uk SVS Account: svs@st-andrews.ac.uk One off Projects

Questions?

Volunteering with the Elderly Dementia Awareness Volunteering with the Elderly

Dementia Syndrome (a group of related symptoms) 65+ A number of causes can result in brain damage leading to dementia. Decline of mental abilities: Memory loss Thinking speed Mental agility Language Understanding Judgement

Impact Loss of independence Struggle to recognise family, friends, etc. Social withdrawal Marginalisation Social Exclusion Lack of self-esteem Reduced quality of life Possible, but not necessarily!

Retained qualities Remote memory Social knowledge Desire to interact Sense of self Ability to recognise and comprehend emotions in others Positive and negative affect expressed freely

Challenges Communication Agitation, distress Shouting/screaming Repetitive conversations Agitation, distress Shouting/screaming Aggressive behaviour Talking to self Mis-identifying people

Communication Make eye contact Active listening Body language Speak clearly, careful word choice Have a laugh

Comorbidity Poor hearing Poor eyesight Lack of dexterity Pain Side effects of medication Depression Anxiety Other mental health problems Other medical issues

Person-centred care Value the person Treat as an individual Empathy Treat with dignity, respect and promote their rights Treat as an individual Understand history, lifestyle, likes and dislikes Empathy Positive social environment – your volunteering!

Volunteering with the Elderly CREATIVITY Variety of tasks Different mediums Pinterest! Music Reminiscing Tea!

Dementia Friendly St Andrews Maggie Ellis; fellow in Dementia Care ‘Thumbs up for a Dementia Friendly St Andrews’ Take a selfie and send it to the Dementia Friendly Facebook page to show your support. Take photo against a brick wall. The brick wall represents the barriers faced by people with dementia, and our support in knocking those barriers down. https://www.facebook.com/dementiafri endlystandrews/

HAVE FUN! Starting to volunteer PVGs Activity planning, idea sharing socials Watch the movie Iris. Fact sheet and leaflet to be uploaded to website. HAVE FUN!

Any questions?

Thank you