Source: Alan Fletcher

For a year and a half, Justine Schneider, professor of mental health and social care at the University of Nottingham, oversaw three researchers who carried out participant observation while working half-time in dementia wards. The results were published as in 2010.

Along with in-depth interviews, says Professor Schneider, the ¡°team ethnography¡± produced 600,000 words of field notes on ¡°what the researchers observed, what they felt and what they reflected on what they observed¡±. These revealed, for example, the ways that care assistants ¡°felt marginalised by the clinical staff¡± and their often ¡°tricky relationships with visiting family members¡± who complained about concerns they did not have the power to address.

Once they had analysed the data, continued Professor Schneider, they realised that they ¡°wanted to share the vivid field notes more widely¡± ¨C and set out to find a suitable playwright. The first person to put herself forward was Tanya Myers, co-artistic director of the Meeting Ground Theatre Company.

The Challenging Care report included a rich range of material about carers, but for ethical reasons said little about the people with dementia themselves, so Ms Myers set out to ¡°source patients¡¯ stories independently¡±. She also became increasingly interested in ¡°the whole issue of person-centred care¡±, given that ¡°there are as many forms of dementia as people with dementia¡±.

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Although the initial plan was to produce a play for the general public, recalls Professor Schneider, workshop performances of Inside Out of Mind in 2011 made clear its ¡°potential as a learning experience for people working in dementia wards. They don¡¯t get a lot of on-the-job training and a medium like theatre seemed likely to prove more accessible than a conventional classroom.¡±

The first proper run of Inside Out of Mind, at Nottingham¡¯s Lakeside Arts Centre in 2013, was therefore partly funded by local health trusts who bought up tickets for their care assistants.

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¡°A lot of the audience had never been to the theatre before,¡± notes Ms Myers. ¡°The demonised underpaid workers were delighted to see their experiences reflected in a play that doesn¡¯t demonise or blame even though it explores issues of care. Senior staff recognised that it is valuable to put on stage care which is less than ideal as a basis for discussion.¡±?

Given that around 225,000 people in the UK develop dementia every year, stresses Ms Myers, ¡°the issue is not going to go away ¨C we need to see what is positive about dementia and not just push them into the shadows¡±.

But isn¡¯t dementia a rather depressing topic for most people¡¯s idea of an entertaining night out?

Not at all, replied Ms Myers, her play is actually very funny, not least because one of the carers said to her: ¡°If you don¡¯t give us permission to laugh, I¡¯ll wring your neck. Laughter is one of our essential survival strategies.¡±

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matthew.reisz@tesglobal.com