Dementia and Palliative Care for Non-Registered Staff

This session will be delivered by Emma Burgess and Megan McGee.

Emma recently joined Dorothy House as an Admiral Nurse, a role supported by Dementia UK, bringing with her, 15 years of hands-on experience as a Mental Health Nurse, including 13 years working on an acute dementia inpatient unit. During this time, she developed a strong professional commitment to delivering compassionate, person‑centred end‑of‑life care.

In her current role with Dorothy House Hospice Care, Emma supports people living with dementia and their families across the community. She holds a dedicated caseload and provides expert clinical guidance, emotional support, and practical strategies to help families navigate the complexities of dementia and end‑of‑life decision‑making.

Emma draws on her extensive hands‑on clinical experience, close multidisciplinary working, and a strong background in family education. Her reflective and calm approach, whether in clinical practice or teaching, focuses on building confidence in dementia care, communication, and end‑of‑life support.

Megan is an Education and Professional Development Lead at Dorothy House, working alongside her clinical role on the Specialist Inpatient Unit. With over a decade of experience in clinical practice, research, and education, she brings a broad and values‑driven perspective to palliative and end‑of‑life care.

Her work is centred on destigmatizing death and creating compassionate, emotionally safe spaces where professionals and the public can explore death, dying, grief, and person‑centred care. Shaped by her diverse cultural background, she champions equity, dignity, and respect for each person’s unique experience.

Known for her warm communication and reflective practice, Megan collaborates closely with multidisciplinary teams, bringing authenticity, curiosity, and a strong commitment to human connection to all aspects of her clinical and educational work.

For any carer who has an interest in supporting patients with Dementia who are Palliative or End of Life.

The course is to give non-registered carers the knowledge and skills to provide safe and effective care when working with their patients who have been diagnosed with Dementia, to improve comfort and quality of care

Supported by the Ambitions Framework (NHS England » Ambitions for Palliative and End of Life Care: A national framework for local action 2021-2026)

Ambition number 3: That states:

“Maximising comfort and wellbeing

My care is regularly reviewed and every effort is made for me to have the support, care and treatment that might be needed to help me to be as comfortable and as free from distress as possible.”

Living Well With Dementia: a national dementia strategy – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The course will start by having a morning reviewing what Dementia is and how having the diagnosis can impact on the person and their family.

The afternoon will be small group learning looking at different techniques around care. The course includes information giving, and patient studies which participants will be invited to discuss and engage in debate with regards to best care and treatment.

The following will be covered:

• What is Dementia and how does it impact both physically and psychologically on patients and their families.
• When do we need to talk about ACP and EoL care
• Recognising signs and symptoms of advanced Dementia and End of life.
• Assessment Tools, and when these are useful.
• Multi-sensory environments, how can we stimulate or change our environment.
• Therapeutic touch and its usefulness
• Ways to promote care and resources.