27.07.2025
Research is helping people with dementia live better lives
Recent news on dementia research has focused on getting an early diagnosis and drugs to treat the condition. However, it is also important to find ways to help people live well with dementia.
The IDEAL (Improving the experience of Dementia and Enhancing Active Life) project aimed to understand what factors influence a person’s ability to live well with dementia. The study ran from 2014 to 2024, involving 1,570 people with mild-to-moderate dementia and more than 1,200 carers.
It found that people with dementia who engaged in activities that were meaningful to them lived happier lives.
A focal point of the study was the co-creation of resources and materials to improve wellbeing. These include:
the ‘Living with Dementia Toolkit’, which aims to give people with dementia hope for the future and offer ideas of ways to engage in meaningful activities
the ‘My Life My Goals’ workbook, which was developed to support people with dementia in setting and reaching goals that are meaningful to them
Thanks to research, more resources are being made available to help people live well with dementia.
Geoff and Susie (pictured above) say that taking part in research has improved their quality of life. They have volunteered for several studies since Susie’s diagnosis in 2013. Watch them speak about their experiences in the video below:
Taking part in dementia research: Geoff and Susie's story
Transcript
0:00 it's a shock and you come out of that meeting thinking well what now we were told 5 to 8
0:077 seconds years and um but here we are 12 years on one of the easiest ways to accept it was to get involved in research it gave us a
0:1616 seconds lot of Hope yes um it gave us a sense of purpose it certainly boosted my resilience you're going to pick up lots
0:2424 seconds of tips you're going to meet lots of interesting people who will help you and give you lots of good ideas of how to cope with certain
0:3333 seconds things if you adapt to it you can find out how to live well with it
