Description

Gina

Dennis

Information Officer

Kingshill Research Centre

 

Web Watch

Recent newspaper reports suggest that around 25-30% of UK

homes currently have internet access, this figure is expected

to double over the next 2 years and web TV will make the Net

even more accessible. Therefore, this month, Web Watch focuses

on sites that may be useful to those with dementia, their

families and friends.

This review focuses mainly on UK and European sites except

for the two USA sites with clear international relevance.

There are many excellent and informative sites based in the

USA. However UK carers may initially gain most from sites

reflecting local practice.

Alzheimer’s Disease International – ADI

www.alz.co.uk

ADI is an umbrella organisation of Alzheimer associations

around the world, which offer support and information to people

with dementia and their caregivers. The site is split into

three sub-sites:

• ADI and its activities, and general information about dementia.

 

• A Caregivers web site.

• The 10/66 Group – a group of international researchers studying

the prevalence of dementia in developing countries.

Alzheimer’s Society UK

www.alzheimers.org.uk

An excellent resource for carers and people with dementia,

not just those with Alzheimer’s disease. As well as general

information about dementia and responses to common questions,

it includes a helpful section aimed at children.

In addition, all the Alzheimer’s Society UK information,

advice and fact sheets can be downloaded, in PDF format, a

very useful facility.

Kingshill Research Centre

www.kinghsill-research.org

The Kingshill website has been included as it has recently

been redesigned (by myself!) to improve it’s ease of use and

now carries the Mental Health Net ‘Four Star’ and ‘Readers’

Choice’ ratings and subscribers to the Health On The Net (HON)

Code of Conduct.

The site includes sections on the process of diagnosis, aspects

of care, dementia research, clinical trials, questions and

hints from carers as well as an overview of the work being

carried out by Kingshill.

European Alzheimer Clearing House – (EACH)

www.each.be/introduction/WP5/ethiek/ethiek.htm

Dementia, Care and Ethics – a brochure for informal carers

of persons with dementia. The brochure is an attempt to provide

some guidance for carers around the ethical issues that may

arise during the ongoing process of caring for a person with

dementia. Although primarily written for informal carers,

professional caregivers may also find it useful. This is just

one of a number of projects undertaken by EACH. Others can

be reached from the site root, www.each.be

Coping

www.bhoffcomp.com/coping/

The Coping Web Site is produced and maintained by Bob Hoffmann

as part of the Hoffmann Family Journal site. Its objective

is to share coping experiences and tips that may be useful

to others caring for someone diagnosed with Pick’s disease,

Alzheimer’s Disease, or other form of dementia.

This is just one example of the many sites created by carers.

The Signpost web site (below), offers a quick way to access

many more carer created sites.

Signpost to Older People and Mental Health Matters Journal

signpostjournal.connect-2.co.uk/

Signpost is the national, non-profit making subscription

journal of the Service Development Team (EMI) of Cardiff and

Vale NHS Trust, Wales, UK.

Its mission statement is: “Working together towards a better

service and improved quality of life for people with dementia,

older people with mental health problems, and their carers”.

The site includes articles from the journal and a comprehensive

set of links to caregiver sites.