Rethinking Communication guide to advanced dementia

The importance of relationships People with dementia retain their need for connection. They are no different from the rest of us. Like healthy people they have a physiological need to exist in the context of relationships. Their ability to function is governed by their sense of emotional connection to others. Tom Kitwood worked hard to encourage us to adopt a new view of dementia. He said that the illness should not be understood simply as a deterioration of the brain. He insisted that the psychological impact of the attitudes of others must also be taken into account if we are to understand why dementia is so very devastating. He urged that when we think about dementia, we must do so not only by reflecting on a person’s individuality but also by thinking about their relationships. Kitwood’s argument returns us to the discussion at the very beginning of this book, when we were exploring the links between infancy and dementia. Most people would not think twice about applying