A new specialist service is offering support to families affected by dementia in Guernsey.

The States of Guernsey began collaborating with Dementia UK in early 2021 after they identified that the Dementia Pathway in the Bailiwick could be improved.

As a result, Colette Bonner and Michelle Tennant, have been appointed as local Admiral nurses (dementia specialists).

In their new role, they will be hosting telephone calls, face-to-face, and virtual clinics with relatives and carers helping them manages the complexities of dementia - a condition linked to progressive memory loss condition. They will also work in the community, visiting GP practices, the hospital, and care homes.

Nurse Colette Bonner says there is a huge demand for this kind of service:

"We provide one-to-one individual care for families and we are very much supporting people who are in grief and experiencing loss when they have had a diagnosis of a loved one with dementia, and they are asking for this kind of help and support."

Nurse Michelle Tennant says this service is a first for the island:

"In Guernsey, we have a lot of services that are geared up to support an individual who is living with dementia, but we don't have a dedicated service that is primarily for the carers or family members. So that's why we are here to try and bridge that gap and provide that service.

We're tending to see more people being diagnosed earlier, with an early-onset type of dementia, and they may be working themselves or have partners that still have to work to pay a mortgage, or they may still have children at home.

There is just a huge host of different aspects of help that is required."

Anyone can be referred to the service by contacting 01481 224272.