On 25 November, the German co-creation workshop of the Memorable project took place online. Over the course of two hours, four experienced female professionals from residential care contributed their expertise to the planned learning objectives, making an important contribution to the further development of the training materials.
The participants shared valuable experiences from their daily work and highlighted the importance of cultural participation for people living with dementia – both for their well-being and for their sense of autonomy and social inclusion. They also openly discussed how feelings of shame, uncertainty, anxiety, and a lack of knowledge about the effects of cultural activities or about available cultural and organisational support services often act as barriers that prevent family carers from engaging in cultural activities.
In addition, the care professionals contributed numerous concrete suggestions: How can family members be encouraged to make use of cultural offers? Which design elements help create cultural spaces in which people with dementia feel safe, addressed, and welcome? Ideas ranged from low-threshold communication and support offers to spatial adaptations and fostering a sensitive, respectful atmosphere.
The insights gained provide an important contribution to the ongoing co-creation of the Memorable curriculum and support the development of learning materials that are practical, realistic, and aligned with the actual needs of care professionals and staff working in cultural institutions.
