The Purpose of Meaningful Engagement: A workbook for those working with people living with dementia in residential care settings

This workbook was created to help care staff think about why we support people living with dementia to feel occupied, and how we can tell if an activity is meaningful. We are generally really good at supporting a person’s physical needs and can see very quickly if something we are doing is going well, for example if someone likes the food and is eating well, if they have a clean and warm living environment or if they are physically well we can usually see it. Sometimes it can be far harder to know if we have met a person’s emotional needs. We know this is a really important side of providing care, but it is much more challenging to know what to do or if we are doing it very well.The workbook is designed to help people working in dementia care settings to think about why we support activities, and if there is anything else we could try to ensure we are meeting the needs of people living with dementia. The workbook is divided into different sections. Firstly, we look at the different reasons that someone may do an activity, and what they hope to get out of it. We then introduce four different characters to help us reflect on how someone might prioritise activities. It considers what outcome people with a different worldview might hope to achieve, and how this effects if they see an activity as successful. The final part gives you a chance to think about your own worldview and what activity outcomes you value.