iSupport for South Asian Dementia Carers

iSupport for South Asian families and supporters of people with dementia 

iSupport for Dementia 

iSupport is an online, self-directed, educational programme for people looking after someone with dementia. iSupport was originally developed by The World Health Organization. We have adapted iSupport for use by South Asian carers, and it is available in English, Bengali, Punjabi and Urdu. 

What is iSupport? 

If you support or look after a parent, relative, partner or friend living with dementia who would find it difficult to manage without you, then you might be described as ‘their carer’. 

iSupport provides information and support for carers of people with dementia. It aims to help you learn about dementia and how to look after someone living with dementia. It also includes information about how to take care of yourself, so that you can continue to support the person you care for. The course is organised into five modules: 

  1. Introduction to dementia 
  2. Being a carer 
  3. Self-care 
  4. Providing everyday care 
  5. Dealing with changes that might happen in people with dementia. 

Each module is divided into individual lessons, which include information, descriptive examples, multiple choice questions, and activities to practise what you have learned. You may choose to read through the entire programme from beginning to end, or you can select the lessons that are most relevant to your everyday life.  

bangla_landing_page.pdf

punjabi_landing_page.pdf

urdu_landing_page.pdf

iSupport for South Asian Carers (English)

Illustration of a dementia support group

iSupport ডিমেনশিয়ার জন্য (Bangla)

Illustration of a family who care for a relative with dementia

iSupport ਡਿਮੈਂਸ਼ੀਆ ਲਈ (Punjabi)

Illustration of a family who care for a relative with dementia

iSupport برائے ڈیمینشیا (Urdu)

Illustration of a daughter caring for her mother with dementia

Printable iSupport resources

Illustration of a checklist

Link

 

 

For more information

The team at UCL worked in partnership with carers, professionals, and carer support organisations (Age UK Lancashire, The Carers Centre Tower Hamlets, Lancashire BME Network, and Touchstone Support) to run focus groups and piloting on the cultural adaptation of iSupport. 

The principal investigators of the iSupport for South Asian Dementia Carers project were Professor Aimee Spector and Professor Joshua Stott. 

For more information about iSupport generally, visit the World Health Organization iSupport website here. 

  • For more information about dementia in languages other than English, visit the Alzheimer's Society website. 
  • You can phone Alzheimer's Society's Dementia Support Line on 0333 150 3456. To speak to an advisor in a language other than English, call the support line, state the language name, hang up, and wait. The advisor will then call you back with an interpreter. 
  • Alzheimer’s Society also has a directory of local support services (available in English only). You might find that there are groups and services specifically for South Asian carers, though the availability of these services will vary. 

This project was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR, Award number 130914).

It was a workstream within the iSupport for Dementia Carers Study, led by Bangor University.

Copied from the online iSupport for Dementia Program www.iSupportForDementia.org. Version 1.0, World Health Organization, Copyright (2018). Adapted and translated with permission of WHO. 

Illustrations by Sokyo Jung.