World Mental Health Day took place yesterday on Sunday 10th October and was dedicated to raising awareness and challenging the stigma surrounding mental health. At Excelcare, we wanted to honour and emphasise the importance of good mental health, so we decided to share stories and advocate for mental health awareness all week.
Throughout the week, we shared stories from people in the Excelcare family, where doing one thing had made a difference to their own mental wellbeing.
Though we shared a roundup at the end of last week, we would like to share Denise’s story today. Denise is the Home Manager of Westport Care Home in London and shares her account of how dementia and mental health support has changed over the years.
“I am probably one of the older people working for Excelcare and have been working in care since 1975.
When I started working in care, I had just had my firstborn and went to work night duty at a local care home to me. In those days you could simply walk into a home and ask for a job and start work the next day with no checks. During my first night shift, I was taken to a unit and the door was unlocked and I was told that it would be locked behind me and I would be let out in the morning. I was on my own with 12 people that I now know were living with dementia, but at the time it was not recognised. People that lived in the unit were walking up and down the corridor, taking their clothing off and urinating everywhere. I made a decision that day that I wanted to study to become a Manager, so I would be able to make a difference to people’s lives.
I worked as a Healthcare Assistant in a hospital, a Senior Carer in a small home for people with learning disabilities, and then went on to work as an Occupational Therapy Instructor in a community for younger people with mental health conditions. I found it quite hard to work with people who self-harmed and had attempted suicide, so I felt that I needed to study more to further understand their needs and make a difference to them. I gained my NVQ’s and took my first Managerial post, opening and setting up an extra sheltered housing scheme. From there, I had two other Managerial posts before coming to Excelcare, where I have been for just over 13 years.
There are a variety of people living at Westport Care Home who live with mental health conditions and/or dementia, and I believe that make a difference to their lives and help them to have a life well lived. During my time at Excelcare, I have completed much training, including a Counselling course to help me support my team and the people living at the home, especially during COVID.
Dementia and mental health have come such a long way since the 70’s and this has improved the lives of many people that have come into care. People’s voices are now heard, and they are able to live the life that they wish to live, but with support if needed.”