Wishes Fulfilled
Synopsis:
“A rollercoaster of emotions!”
“A great way to understand what death actually looks like”
“Az2B end their dementia trilogy on a theatrical high!! “
Understanding end of life care for people with dementia
“When a person with dementia is approaching the end of their life, it can be a very difficult time for them and the people around them. You might not want to think or talk about many of these things. You might find reading this upsetting. But having these difficult conversations with the person, and planning ahead, can ensure the person’s needs are met at the end of their life. It will also help if health and social care professionals communicate well now, with you and with each other.
Planning for the end of life is important for anyone who has a life-limiting condition. For a person with dementia, it is important to try and have these conversations as early as possible, while they can make decisions forthemselves. If they don’t feel ready to think about the future at this time, getting to know their values, wishes and beliefs more generally can help in the future when decisions need to be made on their behalf.”
Alzheimer’s Society
Understanding end of life care for people with dementia
- The importance of preparing for death. (Advance care plan & Best Interest decisions)
- Recognising the signs of someone approaching end of life
- What is a good death? And for whom? It means different things to different people.
- Dignity, Compassion & Respect “Don’t do anything for me without me”
- Additional challenges of dementia to end of life care – unpredictable progression
- Understand/De-mystify the physical processes of death
- Understanding of Terminal agitation, terminal lucidity, Lazarus reflex
- The importance of hydration – keeping the person with dementia comfortable
- Impact on feeding, swallowing & lack of appetite. Inappropriate referrals. (Favourite flavours & enjoyable foods)
- Clarification of language
- Identification of pain, pain management and how pain relief is delivered
- Impact of complex families. Boundaries & Behaviour management. Who are the “significant others”
- The importance of clear, open communication between all parties and an acknowledgement about what is happening.
- Interface with different health professionals & social services
- Making the death experience as comfortable as possible.
- What to expect at the death bed
- Death is not a medical illness.
- Euthanasia
- Sensory connections (smells, sounds, touch)
- The importance of the environment – personal histories
- Place of death
- Support for Care givers both before and after their family member dies
- Emotional & sensory comfort offered by pets, children, family, friends
- Involvement of children – facilitating understanding of what is happening
- Support for the grieving process both before & after death
Production Development
PHASE 1: Research
- What is a good death? And for whom?
- What issues & challenges would you like us to explore?
- What learning outcomes would you like included?
- What messages do you want to get out there?
PHASE 2: Development of script
The Hospice team brought such kindness, integrity and knowledge to our work and we are incredibly grateful and privileged to have collaborated with them. A profound take away for us is that Hospices and not only for the dying, they are for the living. They are full of laughter and love, offering support, strength and dedication to the care and support of all affected by a life-limiting illness. They truly make a positive difference in this world.
CEO After Cloud
An award winning digital platform “ sharing life’s moments with messages of love”. Through the use of a phone app, users can share pictures, videos and audio with a specific group of loved ones. It is a kind of “Memory Box” for those at the end of their lives, their families and friends and is a tool to help people grieve and remember loved ones in a personalised way. After Cloud have developed 3 apps Journals, Moments and Timelines. We are using Timelines within our play, as Josie says “It helps hearing Ali’s voice and seeing her dance.”
Az2B is now an ambassador for After Cloud, and very honoured we are too!!
Founder of Hydration Care Consultancy
is the UK’s first hydration specialist for the elderly. She created the first every “Hydration Care Assessment Tool” called ROC (Reliance On a Carer) designed to help “all concerned” understand the level & type of support an elderly or vulnerable person needs to drink & eat. In the play we are using her “traffic light” drinks coaster system, mugs that have a measuring device inside them and her award winning ROC App walkthrough around point of care. The aim is to help the care provider, the person being cared for and their family better understand the level of hydration care needed.
Through Naomi we have gained such an insight into the importance and understanding of hydration, it is fundamental to the dignity, comfort and support for those being cared for, particularly at end of life.
Collated research was used in a two week development period with the artistic team and fed into improvisations. This generated context, form and ideas for the script.
PHASE 3: Script Developed
PHASE 4: Production, showcase, evaluations and national tour
Production took place in September 2022. Artistically we decided to use different sized puppets to experiment with scale, John Barber designed and built the puppets, they are brilliant!
Jonny Tomlinson composed the music whilst internationally touring with Bonobo (where there’s a will there’s a way) and it’s the Bonobo’s band who make a star appearance on our “rock out” track towards the end of the play.
Following rehearsals we had 4 showcases to trusted partners for the purpose of evaluation and feedback. This was then fed into a final week of rehearsal, then we were out on the road! Our first national tour with Wishes Fulfilled began in October 2022.
We would like to say a big THANK YOU to the Arts Council whose financial support made this happen.
Also a massive THANK YOU to everyone involved in the development of Wishes Fulfilled.
The Dementia Trilogy has been a long held dream, which has finally happened! It is an ongoing adventure and we couldn’t do it without your support!
