Creating Culturally Appropriate Outside Spaces and Experiences for People with Dementia: Using Nature and the Outdoors in Person-Centred Care

Mary Marshall is a social worker who has worked with older people for most of her professional career. She was the director of the Dementia Services Development Centre at the University of Stirling from 1989 until she retired in 2005, and now writes and lectures in dementia care. Mary chaired the steering group for the new dementia standards in Scotland. Jane Gilliard is a social worker who has worked in dementia care for over 25 years. She established Dementia Voice, the dementia services development centre for South West England, and was its director from 1997 to 2005. Jane chaired the national network of Dementia Services Development Centres, was a member of the NICE/SCIE Guideline Development Group, and also sat on the Working Group that developed the National Dementia Strategy for England. Mary and Jane are co-editors of Transforming the Quality of Life for People with Dementia through Contact with the Natural World, also published by JKP.

Cultural sensitivity is a key component of person-centred dementia care. This book acts as a rich source of information and ideas for all those interested in creating culturally-appropriate outdoor spaces and experiences for people with dementia, providing useful information and theory as well as inspiration for practice.

Introduction: Why Do We Need to Understand Cultural Differences? 1. A Family's Perspective on Nature and Dementia: Using the Outdoors to Help the Inner Person. Beth Britton. 2. Nature for People with Dementia in Japan: Some Examples of Horticultural Activities in Japanese Care Homes. Hiroko and Yutaka Inoue. 3. Getting Out and About in the British Countryside: Dementia Adventure. Neil Mapes. Poem: On Aran by Patrick Brenchley. 4. Some South African Understandings of Nature. Margaret-Anne Tibbs. 5. Contact with the Natural World within Hospital Care. Sarah Waller and Abigail Masterton. 6. How Norwegian People with Dementia Experience Nature. Sidsel Bjorneby. 7. How People with Dementia Experience Nature in Rural and Island Scottish Communities. Gillean McClean. Poem: Taking to the Hills by Jean Howitt. 8. Digging Up the Roots: Nature and Dementia for First Nation Elders. Wendy Hulko. 9. A Sense of Place: An Anthroposophic Approach. Judith Jones. 10. Nature in the Lives of an Urban Population with Dementia in North East England. Karen Franks and Kate Andrews. 11. Memories of an Urban Childhood with a Nearby Wood. James McKillop MBE. 12. Dementia and Landscapes: Cultural Attitudes Towards Nature. Joan Domicelj. Conclusion: How Do We Make Outside Spaces Familiar and Life Affirming? List of Contributors. References. Index.