The Butterfly Scheme provides a system of hospital care for people living with dementia or who simply find that their memory isn’t as reliable as it used to be; memory impairment can make hospitalisation distressing, but it needn’t be.
As members of the Butterfly Scheme, we offer, with consent, an option of joining for people who come into hospital with dementia, acute or longstanding memory problems and confusion.
In hospital, dozens of staff can pass through a patient’s life each day and in order to deliver appropriate care, they need to know that a patient has dementia or memory impairment and how to support them; this is where the Butterfly Scheme comes in.
With the aid of a discrete butterfly, it allows all staff to know that the person may need extra care and attention, and above all are always safe. The butterfly is then put on their electronic record for any future needs.
The Butterfly Scheme has now been adopted by nearly two hundred hospitals and healthcare teams across the UK and Ireland. Hospital and healthcare staff really do want to care well and they typically enjoy using the skills and systems provided by the Butterfly Scheme, enabling them to care appropriately for this patient group – including working in partnership with carers.
The butterfly scheme is available in both our hospital and community services.