We are the Dignity Centre – care for the old

Our most important tools are education, academic development and dissemination of information and research results. We wish to inspire health care professionals, volunteers, patients, caregivers, politicians, decision-makers and media.

The Dignity Centre started in 1998 as a project led by Stein Husebø. In 2008, the Dignity Centre became an independent foundation. Our founders are the Norwegian Union of Municipal and General Employees, GC Rieber Fondene, Helle Bennet’s Charitable Fund, and the Norwegian Red Cross. One representative from each organisation is a member of the Dignity Centre’s board. Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen is chair of the board. The main office of the Dignity Centre is located on the Healthcare Campus Haraldsplass and in close vicinity to the Alrek Health cluster in Bergen.

The Dignity Centre is financed by the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services.

Contact

Silje B. Eikemo – General Manager
se@verdighetsenteret.no

Sebastian von Hofacker – Academic / content Manager
svh@verdighetsenteret.no

Aina Kolle – Manager Health and Care
ak@verdighetsenteret.no

Marion Rodgers Løseth – Manager Volunteerism and Culture
mrl@verdighetsenteret.no

Education

The Dignity Centre offers five education programmes: Acute Medicine in Elderly Care, Palliative Elderly Care, Communication Skills Training for Physicians, Volunteer Leadership in Elderly Care and Practical implementation. The participants come from the whole of Norway.

Acute Medicine in Elderly Care

The goal of Acute Medicine in Elderly Care is to increase the competence of health care providers working with acute and severely ill elderly. The education programme is developed especially for health care providers working in nursing homes and with home-dwelling elderly.

The course is offered at least four times a year in a digital format, due to the current pandemic. Parts of the course can be held as webinar or locally in attendance upon request.

Palliative Elderly Care

The goal of Palliative Elderly Care is to increase the competence of health care providers working with the frail, severely ill and dying old, and their caregivers. The education especially focuses on dementia and palliative care, including end-of-life care. The education programme is developed especially for health care providers working in nursing homes and with home-dwelling elderly.

The course is offered at least four times a year in a digital format, due to the current pandemia. Parts of the course can be held as webinar or locally in attendance upon request.

Communication - Skills Training for Physicians

The goal of the Communication - Skills Training for physicians is to increase the doctor´s ability to communicate effectively with the seriously ill or frail patient and the caregiver while balancing honesty with empathy. The course follows the VitalTalk methodology and is offered 3-4 times a year in attendance in cooperation with Ahus University Hospital, Olso.

Volunteer Leadership in Elderly Care

The goal of Volunteer Leadership in Elderly Care is to contribute to increased competence, motivation and inspiration among those responsible for volunteers in elderly care. During the course participants learn how to mobilise, organise, follow-up, and lead volunteer efforts in elderly care.

Practical Implementation

The goal of Practical implementation is to enhance the skills and motivation to the employees in elderly care who are involved in implementing new services, regulations or technology in their health services.

Projects

Our projects aim in different ways to strengthen our education programmes. A couple of examples of current projects are the PhD-project Voluntarism in dementia care (FRIDE – Frivillighet i demensomsorgen) and Interaction between the municipality and voluntary sector – a model for good cooperation.

Årringer (translated: Tree Rings) is a project we are undertaking in collaboration with the Norwegian National Centre for Ageing and Health. The elderly population embodies a rich diversity of life experiences. Through the Årringer series, we aim to highlight the strengths and challenges of older adults, thereby reducing stigma and combating age discrimination.

Last Aid- The end of life and death of our relatives, friends and neighbours often makes us feel helpless. The ancient knowledge that helped accompany us in our deaths in the past has been gradually lost with industrialisation. To regain this knowledge, we offer a short Last Aid course.

Events

The Dignity Centre’s public relations work, is designed to make a fresh impact related to issues concerning the frail old. Another area of interest concerns the interaction and balance between the health care professionals’ work and efforts of volunteerism in elderly care.

A couple of our regular events are the annaul Conference on Volunteering and Activity in Elderly Care and A Day of Dignity - the latter a collaboration with Bergen Intentional Film Festival. A narrative perspective, arts and music are integrated parts of every conference – which gives a special signature to the event. The Centre also arranges debates and meetings on topics regarding the elderly, health care and voluntarism.