I was very interested in Patrick Weston's comments in his introduction
on Wed, 19th Apr. on the lack of attention given to the accessibility
needs of people with mental impairments.
While I appreciate that Patrick's personal interest is in autism, it has
great relevance for an EPSRC funded research project I have just begun
on designing the external physical environment to improve the quality of
life for older people with dementia. Design for people with dementia
tends to concentrate on the internal, generally institutional,
environment, yet the Dementia Services Development Centre at Stirling
Univerity estimated that in 1995 80% of people with dementia were living
in the community, with 23% living alone. Furthermore, many of the daily
difficulties encountered by older people appear to be caused more by
insensitive planning and local environmental circumstances than by
health problems.
The intention of this project, mainly through interviews and
observation, is to seek an understanding of how older people with
dementia perceive and utilise their local external environments and to
identify specific obstacles and aids thereby encountered. This,
obviously, includes the accessibility of public buildings and public
transport for people who not only suffer the physical effects of the
normal ageing process but also the additional cognitive impairments
caused by dementia.
The main intended outcome is to devise a design guide listing criteria
to consider in ensuring that urban areas are accessible to older people
with dementia. I would be very pleased to receive the thoughts and
comments of other list subscribers on this subject.
Thanks,
Lynne Mitchell
Oxford Centre for Sustainable Development: Cities
School of Architecture
Oxford Brookes University
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