This is somewhat unrelated to the climate change post, but I wonder whether you saw Gerry Robinson’s brilliant expose of dementia homes in the week? In it, he explored the varying approaches to caring for our elderly, in particular those with dementia.

Care home owners are all subject to the same set of targets and measures, many of which are related to health and safety. Yet there was a visible difference between care homes. In the very best facilities, residents were engaged, active, willing. In the worst, residents were treated serviced as ‘cases’. Why this difference?

The only difference I could discern was that some care home owners had the capacity, or the willingness, to step into the shoes of their residents. One in particular provided vastly superior services at the same cost of those whose services were little better than a waiting room for death. And the difference had nothing to do with money or targets or service level agreements. The difference was empathy.

Good luck with this blog.

Rob – http://www.bloompsychology.com