First stop Malaysia

First Stop Malaysia for my Churchill Fellowship 'Arts and Older People'

Malaysia is a country of extremes.  Of so much pleasure and such a lot of pain.  Totally overwhelmed by a 100 bed ward of elderly people, many with dementia, all dressed in peach cotton and scrupulously clean.  'They don't talk about their families' said one staff member, yet one woman of 100 was stopped from telling me that her son had not visited.  Just where can we start with creative and interactive activities?  Trying to find volunteers to go in in teams and work with small groups.  I drive away and there are all the amazing colours and smells, all the sensory stimulus one could hope for, so I have suggested we find a way for them to have a sensory garden with plants and water and stone shapes.

I go to Ipoh and meet Dr Goh who is President of the Malaysian Dementia Society and find such vision and commitment to finding solutions for older people, especially those with dementia.  He has already implemented the idea of a herbal garden with sweet fragrances, and he has invented a proto-type whereby people in wheel chairs can stand and have eye contact with others instead of being looked down upon.  He is very committed to cross cultural creative stimulus and is encouraging carers to do massage and storytelling.  

As I said - Malaysia is a country of extremes!