Walk in the shoes of someone with dementia. Sign up for the Virtual Dementia Tour.
“I had no idea.”
“Everyone on the planet needs to experience this!”
“You are an active learner… you walk in the shoes of someone with dementia.”
“There is an immediate and lasting change of perception.”
These are just some of the quotes we’ve heard about the Virtual Dementia Tour (VDT), a simulation activity to help participants have a greater understanding of dementia. The VDT uses sensory tools and instruction. Trained facilitators guide participants outfitted with special devices that alter their senses while they try to complete common everyday tasks and exercises. The tour enables caregivers to experience for themselves the physical and mental challenges those with dementia face, and use the experience to provide better person-centered care. After experiencing the VDT, participants are able to identify with, and better understand, the behaviors and needs of those with dementia.
AAMC hosted its first VDT in 2014. Since then, we have had many staff, volunteers, fire fighters, police, paramedics, patient advisors, family members, and others participate in the tour. Above, Edgar Santos, RN, prepares to perform normal day-to-day tasks after donning googles that simulate a loss of central and peripheral vision, sensory deprivation gloves, and headphones that replicate dementia-induced confusion.
For more information about the Virtual Dementia Tour, contact Danette Readling, BSN, RN, CMSRN, Clinical Nurse Educator, Acute Care of the Elderly Unit, at 443-481-3379 or dreadling@aahs.org.
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