Getting through Covid-19 together
Kia ora, I hope you are all doing okay with the shift back up the Covid-19 alert levels. Even though we were all expecting something like this it came as a shock.
Many of us may be feeling anxious, and our thoughts are with everyone at this difficult time. Especially all the New Zealanders who are living with dementia, and everyone who has loved ones living in residential care facilities that have gone into lockdown.
Earlier this year we all saw first-hand the impact of Covid-19 on the more vulnerable people in our communities, and equally, the impact we can all have with a little kindness and consideration.
As we enter another period of uncertainty, let’s do everything we can to keep connected (albeit safely), and support those around us. That means checking in and doing what we can to help, and being patient with others while we’re out and about.
That also means keeping a careful eye on respite care needs for people living with dementia and care partners, and providing extra support and assistance for carers at home.
It’s a little known fact that most people living with dementia do so at home. So our ability to provide accessible, good quality services in the community is so important, none more so than at a time like this.
This is one of the things we are fighting for in the NZ Dementia Action Plan, our stake in the ground and a call to action for government to follow-through on a commitment to dementia. We stand ready, willing and able, right now, to work with government to bring this into action.
In the meantime, it’s important to remember that you are not alone. We are here to support you. The next couple of weeks are likely to challenging for lots of us. But we got through this together before and we will do it again, with kindness, patience and by taking a moment to think about how we can help each other out.
Catherine Hall
Chief Executive, Alzheimers NZ