Copelands launch event at Parliament Buildings
BCM held a launch event on Tuesday 4 March in the Long Gallery at Parliament Buildings, Stormont to help promote Copelands, our latest development which will specialise in Dementia & Nursing Care.
BCM staff worked hard to bring this event to life sending out numerous invitations to MLAs, councillors, BCM supporters, those who work with people living with dementia, representatives from the voluntary sector and the Methodist Church.
Over 100 guests attended to hear about this development and what BCM’s vision is for implementing quality care in the field of dementia. Among our numerous speakers we were delighted to welcome The Minister of Health, Social Services & Public Safety, Mr Edwin Poots MLA, who graciously opened the presentations with a positive and enthusiastic account of how Copelands will affect the people of the Ards peninsula in positive way. We were also fortunate to have Peter Passmore, Professor of Ageing and Geriatric Medicine, Queen’s University Belfast deliver an excellent presentation which mirrored Minister Poots’ sentiments with enthusiasm and conviction.
Our very own Sarah Penney, BCM Dementia Lead and Kirk House Manager, discussed the Copelands Care model with a creative presentation which invited all of the guests to participate in an effective exercise on what it feels like to be living with dementia and the effects that this has on various functions that we take for granted, like sight and speech. This helped to reinforce how our care model will make a difference to those living with dementia. Shelagh McCaughan, daughter of one of our Kirk House residents who is living with dementia talked about this development from a carer’s perspective. In what was a moving and touching presentation Shelagh discussed the impact diagnosis can have on the entire family as well as the individual and how difficult finding suitable care has been. The improvements in her mother’s condition are thanks to new advancements in training and modifications to our existing Kirk House premises.
Other speakers included Rev. Richard Johnston, Superintendent, Brian Burns, Director, Richard Murphy, Richard Murphy Architects and Maeve McLaughlin MLA, who all contributed to the message of Copelands. And thank you to MCE Public Relations for their assistance with organising this event.
This event was a big success for BCM, attracting many MLAs and supporters from across Northern Ireland whose presence helped to reinforce BCM’s decision to progress with this state of the art care home and continue to support those who need it most.
