<< Background >>Services need to be developed where the elderly and their family can contribute on their own premises and on the basis of what they believe is important and meaningful to them. This will have to involve strengthening the user perspective and more emphasis on alternative thinking in the services. Alternative in the sense that the individual and next of kin must have more influence and control over services provided and decide what works. In this context, the use of peers and experienced workers may be appropriate measures.In recent years, in the health and welfare services, Peer Support Workers have been employed as a resource to promote the user perspective, strengthen the recovery orientation and better tailor the services to the needs of the users. When it comes to services for people with dementia, this has not yet been tested in Norway, but in the UK, there has been testing of such services on a small scale (Stott et al., 2017). There are two possible types of Peer Support Workers. (1) People in the early stages of developing dementia, and (2) next of kin to people with dementia.<< Objectives >>− The aim of the project is to help create sustainable and competency-enhancing services for people with dementia by finding new ways to involve users and their next of kin in service development.− The project is also going to help reduce the shame, stigma, and taboo associated with dementia, so that people affected are seeking help at an early stage.− Testing of Peer Support Workers in dementia care, primary for next of kin, but also for people in an early stage of dementia − Establish collaboration with involved parties in the project across countries− Find out what the status is of the services for people with dementia in selected municipalities. Clarify the role and function of experienced staff in dementia− Develop guidelines for PSW in dementia care− Disseminate information about the project to involved parties and other interested parties− Raising awareness about the status of elderly people/dementia as well as about the peer support workers and family caregivers in all participant countries.<< Implementation >>− Mapping the baseline situation− Establish the project organization− Collaboration meetings between parties to the project− Recruit and engage PSW (Peer Support Worker)− Conduct training of PSW − Testing of PSW<< Results >>Results: (intellectual outputs) double check− Report on the effects of PSW in dementia care− Developed a strategy for how to involve relatives in dementia care - advocacy− Guidelines for recruiting and qualifying of PSW− Developed training courses for PSW in dementia Care− Develop a digital platform for collaboration and networking between partners, participants and stakeholders − Established measures that can continue after the project has ended− Established a network for sharing of experience and knowledge specific for community based dementia care

The European population is ageing and more people live into old age. This also means that there is an increase of age-related diseases such as dementia, placing higher levels of demand on caring services. People that suffer from dementia are excluded from social productivity, are at high risk of social exclusion and have a high demand for care. At the same time, there is an increasing lack of professionals in elderly care [2016, Eurostat]. Governmental authorities across Europe recognize this trend and promised more investments in the domain of elderly care. However, students do not consider the elderly sector as a fulfilling career option, leaving a gap between supply and demand for the care of the elderly. The iConnect project aimed to motivate students to make elderly care a potential and viable option for their study and future career, in parallel to the social inclusion of older people with dementia, by bringing them together in an intergenerational creative approach. We aimed to improve the knowledge and skills of students, the future care professionals, with our innovative creative learning program combining elements like music, art, play and drama. This way students, but also other stakeholders involved, will be equipped to contribute to the goals of dementia friendly environments. Through our project students gained new knowledge and skills related to communication, empathy and creativity, into practice while they make contact with people with dementia. People with dementia felt recognized and reinforced in their identity which enhanced the quality of life.The project selected a number of stakeholders as participants for activities and the output, being students and educators from Higher Education Institutes (HEI), care organisations and care professionals, specialised in dementia care, older people with dementia and their family and/or care givers and policy makers.Throughout the project we delivered 4 intellectual outputs; the Needs Specification Report (a research on current practices related to the use of creative elements and the needs of all involved stakeholders for the implementation of a inclusive dementia care), an innovative Module with learning and teaching material for educators and students, a Blended Learning Platform (based on Moodle structure) and the Transnational Implementation Guidelines, which helps HEI’s and educators across Europe to implement the training, the platform and the teaching material, supporting the impact, replicability and sustainability of iConnect. The guidelines takes up all the findings from the pilot and is complete package, including a teacher and student module, assessment methods, PowerPoints, manuals, index, video instructions and the online blended platform.The iConnect module adapted a co-design and partnership approach amongst students, educators, care providers and older people with dementia in developing all material and the online learning platform. Therefore creation of these 4 end products was supported by activities organised within the context of the project. We organized focus sessions, held interviews and organised an international Learning, Teaching and Training Activity (LTTA), which was a peer-to-peer training in which the participants shared skills and competences. Through the LTTA we trained the teachers and staff who would work with students in the pilot later in this project. The module was tested during this pilot of this project with students participating from four different HEI’s; Hogeschool Utrecht (HU, Netherlands), LAB University of Applied Sciences (LAB, Finland), University of Ioannina (UoI, formerly named TEI, Greece) and Udine University (UNIUD, Italy). Throughout the project each partner organised activities such as presentations, workshops and webinars in which the output was disseminated, tested or discussed. From all these activities given feedback was used to optimise the final outputs.At least 1000 stakeholders were reached through dissemination activities with an overall positive response. For the participating stakeholders the direct impact was enriching the awareness, knowledge, skills and attitudes. Especially in presentations, workshops and webinars participants vocalised their interest and accomplished awareness on the subject, which resulted in an increased willingness among educators to include the module within curricula. The module was used in HEI partners during the pilot and is now integrated in the curriculum of all partner HEI’s for the year(s) to come, sometimes even with a elaboration of the module. Participating students developed a compassionate and empathetic attitude to improve caring towards older people with dementia. Teachers felt empowered and equipped they can now transfer this new knowledge and skills on to the students. With older adults with dementia who participated in the pilot a decrease in the aggressive behaviour of the older adults was seen.

This educational program aims at teaching English to people with Mild Cognitive Impairmentand using English songs as a main tool for the teaching process. The methodology of this educational program is based on innovative teaching approaches such as “Communicative Language Teaching”(Richards and Rodgers 2001: 153-174) and “Natural Approach”(Krashen and Terrell 1983). Moreover it borrows some elements from “(De)suggestopedia” (Lozanov 1978) and the method of “Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP)”(Bandler and Grinder 1982). These methods place great emphasis on verbal communication, creation of a positive environment in class, reduction of stress and encouragement of learners to learn step by step in a natural and pleasant way. It is a very effective method for the patients since it enhances their memory and knowledge, boosts their positive psychology and improves their quality of life.The main aim of this educational program is to enhance people’ cognitive abilities (like memory) and prevent from Alzheimer’s disease. This aim is divided into the following objectives:1.Improvement of the people with MCI’ memorization ability through the use of songs.2.Help of the teaching process through songs. The material that would be taught in a conventional lesson becomes more interesting when it is related to a song. In this way the participants learn more easily. 3.Reduction of stress and increase of positive emotions. Many people with cognitive decline suffer from depression or stress disorder. The songs wewill choose reduce stress both through the calming music, and through the lyrics that convey positive messages and emotions.4.Socialization of the people with MCI and creation of the sense that they belong in a group.5.Improvement of the people with MCI’ quality of life, since they will socialize and obtain useful knowledge, as well as their stress will be reduced.6.Prevention from Alzheimer’s disease. 7.Familiarization with English Language through phrases that are related to communication and verbal expression. 8.Exposure to British and American culture. 9.Increase of people with MCI’ knowledge regarding vocabulary, grammar, syntax and other aspects of English language through a pleasant learning process.The main outputs of this project are: -Development of the methodology related to the workshops-Development of an open online education course for professionals

Worldwide, there are around 24 million people living with dementia with 6 million residing in Europe. The condition affects 10% of the population over 65 and nearly 50% of those over 85, and can impact not only on the individual but also their family and caregivers. The cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease include, difficulties with memory, communication, orientation, and attention. Research has suggested that cognitively stimulating activities may help to reduce the rate of functional decline and can support enhanced Quality of Life, social inclusion and well-being in people living with Alzheimer’s Disease. Consequently, both traditional and ‘Serious Games’ have been used for this intention. ‘Serious Games’ are games that have been designed for a purpose other than pure entertainment. Preliminary research has highlighted that ‘Serious Games’ used to stimulate cognitive abilities in people with Alzheimer’s may have potential benefits, particularly for those with mild and moderate symptoms. Therefore, the AD-GAMING project was established to promote these benefits and to overcome the barriers in their uptake, amongst people impacted by Alzheimer’s Disease. Its primary objective is to increase the competences (attitudes, skills and knowledge) of those people affected by mild and moderate Alzheimer’s Disease (the individual, their family and caregivers) as well as develop a training program to facilitate the use of ‘Serious Games’ amongst this population. The project’s secondary objectives include:Create awareness of the importance and possibilities of ‘Serious Games’ as a tool for improving quality of life, social inclusion and well-being in people with Alzheimer’s. Inform those affected by Alzheimer’s Disease about the potential benefits of ‘Serious Games’ and disseminate a selection of these games amongst people with the condition. Train volunteers, caregivers, families and professionals on how to engage people with Alzheimer’s Disease through Serious Games and develop their digital and technological skills, to enable them to properly exploit ICT-based activities. Involve people with Alzheimer’s Disease, professionals and caregivers in developing these training materials and processes.AD-GAMING Project is being developed by a consortium of different entities from 5 countries (Spain, Romania, Slovenia, Greece and the United Kingdom) and complementary backgrounds (user associations, university and technological centres). These partners are strongly committed to increasing the Quality of Life, well-being and social inclusion of people living with Alzheimer’s Disease.