Conference To Support Older LGBT People
The first ever national training conference is being held in Newcastle upon Tyne this October to help provide health and social care professionals with the necessary skills to meet the individual care needs of members of the older lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and/or trans community. ‘Making Person Centred Care A Reality: How to Support LGBT Older People In Care Settings’ will address a number of care challenges that arise when an older LGBT person is admitted into the care system and focus on practical approaches and tools to support care organisations to practically adapt to these ways of working.
“When an older gay or lesbian person goes into care there is a common assumption that they are straight and in many cases important aspects of their identity which makes them unique get left at the door, explains Jill Heslop, Creative Producer at Open Clasp Theatre Company who are running the conference. Our conference is about supporting care professionals and providing them with the skills necessary to acknowledge that a person’s sexual orientation is an important part of who they are and to practically adapt their approach in order to ensure that their individual care requirements are met.”
The specialist training day will include key speakers from Age UK, Stonewall Housing and a number of experts in gender equality and ageing who will present information, research findings, and address the legal guidelines surrounding the care of LGBT people. The conference will also feature workshops, facilitated discussions and a live performance taken from the critically acclaimed production ‘’Swags & Tails” which is based on the real life experiences and opinions of 166 older women, carers, care providers, healthcare nurses and people living with dementia. The scenes will demonstrate examples of good practice in the care of the lesbian community and show how care workers can make positive changes within the workplace.
The conference will be held at The CastleGate in the centre of Newcastle Upon Tyne on Wednesday 29th October from 9:30am – 5.00pm. Care professionals who would like to attend the conference are encouraged to take advantage of a special early bird rate of £125 which is available until September 15th 2014.
Each delegate from a care organisation will receive their own copy of the “Swags & Tails: Valuing Good Practice In Care” an in-house training tool including DVD, usually priced at £120. Tickets can be purchased online from Brown Paper Tickets.