Person Centred Universe: Online Learning

Introduction

Volunteers are often the least supported — and most relationally exposed — people in dementia care settings.

They enter environments where memory may be changing, communication may be difficult, and emotions may surface in unexpected ways.

Many volunteers arrive with kindness and goodwill, but little preparation for how dementia shapes daily life in a care home.

This course offers a different kind of preparation.

It is not clinical training.

It is not staff education.

And it is not about managing behaviour.

Instead, it explores something quieter — and often more powerful.

How to be with someone well.

Through short reflective lessons, this course helps volunteers understand dementia as lived experience, develop confidence in communication when words begin to change, and respond calmly when confusion or distress arises.

It also clarifies an important idea:

Volunteers are not there to fix situations or replace staff.

They are there to offer presence.

A conversation.

A shared activity.

A walk down the hallway.

Or simply the experience of not being alone.

In environments where much of the day is shaped by schedules and tasks, these moments matter.

This course helps volunteers contribute safely, respectfully, and relationally to the life of the home.

Course Purpose

To prepare volunteers to offer safe, meaningful, relational presence in dementia care settings.

Who This Course Is For

• Volunteers supporting people living with dementia
• Volunteer coordinators seeking orientation resource
• Recreation and engagement teams supporting volunteer programs
  
  

What You Will Explore

• Understanding Dementia in Context - Seeing dementia as lived experience, not simply diagnosis.
• The Volunteer Role - Why presence matters more than expertise.
• Boundaries and Safety - Knowing where the volunteer role begins and ends.
• Communication and Connection - How to connect when language begins to change.
• Responding to Distress - When to stay present, when to step back, and when to seek help.
• Belonging to the Home -  How volunteers help shape the atmosphere of a care environment.

What Makes This Course Different

Many dementia courses focus on symptoms, stages, or caregiving techniques.

This course focuses on relationship.

It helps volunteers understand how small interactions — tone, patience, presence — shape the daily experience of people living with dementia.

Rather than teaching volunteers what to do, it helps them understand how to be.

Course Format

• Approx. 30–45 minutes
• Plain language learning modules
• Designed for volunteers in care homes and community dementia programs