Dementia Dialogue

In this podcast, the Mersereau family shares their experiences with dementia. Clara and Bill live together in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Clara was diagnosed with dementia four years ago. Bill, her husband, supports her as they experience the joys, challenges, and everyday life with Clara’s diagnosis. Their two daughters, Jo-Ann (who lives in Thunder Bay) and Patty (who lives in Winnipeg) join in to sha...

The Solidarity of Sisterhood: Women Living with Dementia   Three inspiring women living with dementia—Brenda, Clara, and Myrna, talk with Dr. Elaine Wiersma about what a diagnosis means to them. Through a “kitchen table” conversation about the challenges and joys of being women living with dementia, you will walk away inspired by their courage and resilience. Women are more likely to be impacted b...

Episode 4 of our Dementia & Spirituality Series: What we do here counts – Sharing stories of spirituality and caregiving Rev. Faye Forbes and Lisa Loiselle are joined by guests Matthew Dineen and Janice Keefe, PhD to discuss the spiritual needs of the person living with dementia and their care partners. Grounded in their faith communities, Matt and Janice describe how this has provided them with t...

Early on, Megan O’Connell and Claire Webster sensed the impact that COVID-19 would have on care partners of people living with dementia in the community.  Megan is based at the University of Saskatchewan and Claire who was caregiver for her mother before she died, has her own company http://www.carecrosswalk.com  and is lead for  McGill Cares http://www.mcgill.ca/dementia   As members of the Alzhe...

In this episode in the spirituality and dementia series, we engage in a passionate discussion about spirituality, care, and support of people living with dementia from a lens of diversity and culture. This episode features Roberta Bishop and Elder Mary Wilson, hosted by Rev. Faye Forbes and Lisa Loiselle. Roberta Bishop, Operations Manager at the Rainbow Resource Centre in Winnipeg Manitoba has bo...

We are changing things up a bit and this episode talks about some new producers and what topics we will be showcasing in upcoming episodes. Women and Dementia and Dementia in the Family context are 2 episodes that Dr. Elaine Weirsma, Ph. D. of Lakehead University will be discussing. Dementia from a woman’s perspective involves  3 engaging and articulate women who share a diagnosis of dementia and...

Guests Elisa Bosley and Christine Thelker discuss spiritual care for people living with dementia. Elisa speaks from the voice of a chaplain’s relationship with those living with dementia and Christine from a first-person voice regarding her own spirituality and supporting others living with dementia. The conversation focuses on how spirituality is part of every human being.  It goes beyond a parti...

     Mary Beth Wighton’s warmth, candor and strength shine through as she talks about her journal, now in book form, Dignity and Dementia: Carpe Diem.       Written over a 6 year period, Mary Beth’s personal reflections frequently acknowledge the gifts from people in her life that have enabled her to live a full life and become a leading advocate for her peers living with dementia. The entries beg...

In this, the first episode of a 4-part Spirituality Series, Jane Kuepfer joins co-hosts Rev. Faye Forbes and Lisa Loiselle to introduce the topic of spirituality and dementia. Jane, RP, PhD, MDiv, is the Schlegel Specialist in Spirituality and Aging with the Schlegel-UWaterloo Research Institute for Aging (RIA). She is a spiritual director, an ordained minister, and a registered psychotherapist, a...

Happily Ever Older Moira Welsh’s new book Happily Ever Older: Revolutionary Approaches to Long-Term Care is a “call to action”.  Moira sees the need to change the way we provide support to people who have complex needs, especially people with advanced dementia. Over almost 20 years as a reporter for the Toronto Star, Moira has documented the shortcomings of long-term care in Ontario. Her investiga...

  Almost 20 years ago, Brenda Hounman a woman living with dementia, responded to an advertisement posted by the Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program’s (MAREP) Dr. Sherry Dupuis PhD, and thus began a fruitful collaboration. This episode describes how the relationship between “participant” and researcher has evolved, some of the results of the partnership and some lessons-learned that can...

David Czuczman is helping other people with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) and, just like she has throughout his 12 years of living with the condition, his wife Jill is supporting him all the way. David overcame some initial reservations and became an active participant in the Ontario Neurodegenerative Research Initiative (ONDRI www.ondri.ca ). Jill, as a care partner, also participates in contribu...

    The idea of life choices is woven throughout this episode’s conversation with Myrna Norman. Her life has not been easy, having been widowed in her mid-40’s with a growing family but she has got on with life in a remarkable way. Challenges confronted her when she was first diagnosed with Frontal Temporal Dementia (FTD) but she uncovered options and the choices they presented.    Our ‘kitchen ta...

    Jim Berry and Bill Heibein are members of the North West Dementia Working Group (the Group) that was formed in 2014 by people with dementia and care partners to work to promote the change that they want to see happen to improve the lives of people living with dementia. The group is small, about 20, but mighty in its ambitions and accomplishments.    Jim and Bill share some of their motivations...

    This is the first in a multi-part series on Dementia Friendly Communities. In it, Phyllis Fehr, a member of our Editorial Board and also a member of the Dementia Friendly Communities project of the Hamilton Council on Aging hosts a discussion with Debbie Keay a fellow member of the Hamilton Ontario Project and Roger Marple who is active in a Dementia Friendly project in  Calgary, Alberta.    ...

Reflection, Reframing and Reimagining (repeat of Episode 4, Season 1)   Susan Bithrey and her husband Reg were looking forward to the perfect retirement until life interrupted. Susan describes how she reframed her experience and found ways to affirm her husband’s strengths, even as they diminished. In the process, she found new strengths within herself.   As a retirement gift, Susan was given a jo...

Ron Posno is a retired educator living with mild cognitive impairment. He shares with us some of his experiences and talks about coming to terms with his condition and continuing to live a full life with many great examples and tips. Ron became aware of some cognitive struggles he was having and became worried. This led him to visit his doctor whereupon describing his concerns, she administered th...

   Bill C-7 proposes certain changes to the legislation on medical assistance in dying. In this episode, Dr. Mariette Brennan, a professor in Constitutional Law and Health Policy at the Bora Laskin Law School, Lakehead University, outlines the origins of this legislation in Canada, the current legislation and the proposed changes in Bill C-7.      When the current law (Bill C-14) was passed in 201...

In this episode, I interview Christine Thelker, a dementia activist from British Columbia and author of For This I am Grateful: Living with Dementia. Christine’s book evolved from a personal journal to a blog and eventually to a book that was published in June 2020. Christine is 60 years old and has experienced symptoms of dementia arising from cardiovascular disease for 5 years. In our discussion...

Jim Mann, a dementia activist from BC and Jacobi Elliott, PhD a researcher with the Geriatric Health Systems Research Group at the University of Waterloo both share a passion for improving the experience that Canadians have in our health care system. They reflect on the key themes that emerged in our conversations about The System Journey, including team support, treating the whole person, proacti...

Dr. Ajantha Jayabarathan practices family medicine in Halifax NS. By adopting a shared care framework from mental health, Ajantha describes how she provides family-oriented dementia care in collaboration with other service providers. We get a glimpse of the comprehensive approach Ajantha strives for, though it is not always easy as service access or availability is often uneven.  We also hear abou...

Leanne Lawrence and Jean Daku live in rural Saskatchewan where Leanne’s mother, Marjory lived her whole life. We learn how Jean, a nurse practitioner, championed a memory clinic practice model within the Kipling Primary Care Centre and she and others supported Leanne and her mom as dementia developed. Enabling residents of rural areas to receive high-quality service is an important contribution to...

Dementia, Stigma and Action – Human Rights     In this episode of our series on Human Rights and Dementia we listen to 3 women who are active in the struggle to overcome the stigma experienced by so many people with dementia and that often extends to their families. Alisa Grigorich reads an article that she and her colleague Pia Kontos recently wrote on “COVID-19, stigma-  and the scandalous negle...

In Part 1, we heard from Rachel about her Mom’s growing dementia and of her need to move to long term care, despite her father Chris’ reluctance. We were also introduced to Monica and Cara who work at a MINT Memory Clinic supporting families like Rachel’s. Rachel reflects on her experience as a daughter of parents with dementia and some of her lessons learned while Monica and Cara discuss what the...

Rachel Hofstetter’s parents, Chris and Dorothy Quick are living with dementia. Before they moved into the same long term care home at different times, Rachel recounts some of the challenges and transitions that they experienced. These challenges include decision-making, driving, admission into long-term care, and working with multiple providers. Rachel received support from a MINT Memory Clinic. M...