Borders Dementia Specialist Unit Information for families/carers
Patient information leaflets
Borders Older Adult Psychology Service
For a copy of this information in another format contact
Mental health Oder Adults service
telephone: 01896 827105
"Information given on this site is not meant to take the place of a talk with your doctor or health worker."
Why are psychologists involved on the ward?
A clinical psychologist on a ward provides psychological assessment and intervention. The psychologist will work with the Multi-disciplinary team to develop a plan.
What happens next?
The psychology team will spend time getting to know the individual. We may carry out some observations. We will speak to ward staff and contact you to learn more about their life story. We then invite everyone involved to a meeting called an information sharing session.
What is an information sharing session?
You will be invited to an information sharing session. This lasts around an hour, and is a chance for you and staff to understand more about the person’s behaviour. It is important that we have your view because you know the individual best.
After this session, the psychologist creates a formulation.
What is a formulation?
- A formulation is a psychological framework that helps us understand behaviour
- It thinks about lots of things, including:
- Life story
- Personality
- Medication
- Physical health
- Mental health
- Cognitive impairment
- Social environment
- Current behaviours and vocalisations
This helps us find out if there is a need the individual has that is not being met. A plan is made that includes certain activities or communication to help meet this need. We hope to help your family member/friend feel less distressed.
Please scan the QR code to find out more about formulations and what sort of things we might ask you.
If you have any other questions or concerns regarding your appointment or psychological therapies, please do get in touch.