Dementia And Engagement Advisor

We have a long history of providing exceptional care that empowers older people to live a full life. As a not-for-profit aged care provider, we're able to invest in providing an exceptional experience to our clients as well as support and develop our frontline staff to achieve this. When you join us, you will be provided with a competitive rate of pay, not-for-profit salary packaging benefits and the support of a wonderful leadership team and colleagues.

**About the Role**:
We have an exciting opportunity to join our team at Merrylands as a Dementia and Engagement Advisor. In this role, you will be responsible for the planning, development, implementation and evaluation of best practice approaches in dementia care. This approach will focus on engagement and purposeful living and will include working directly with residents, providing staff education, mentoring, and modelling around best practice approaches to dementia care.

This role will also involve supporting other SCC homes with developing best practice approaches for residents living with a diagnosis of dementia on a needs basis.

**Key Responsibilities**:
As Dementia and Engagement Advisor, you will:

- Coordinate a dynamic, resident driven leisure and engagement program that supports, challenges, and enhances the psychological, social, emotional, physical, spiritual and cultural wellbeing of our residents.
- Provide education, support and mentoring to all staff within the home in relation to best practice dementia care and approaches
- Drive creative and innovative programming approaches to ensure residents are offered quality, meaningful leisure and engagement programs, activities and opportunities that enhance their quality of life.
- Provide mentorship and leadership to all staff in relation to (1) meeting the resident's engagement, leisure, cultural and spiritual needs, wants and preferences, (2) supporting the development of plans to minimise responsive behaviours and (3) developing services to maximise the quality of life of residents living with a diagnosis of dementia.
- University qualification in Dementia Care or other qualification deemed acceptable by the Engagement and Purposeful Living Manager
- Tertiary qualifications in Therapeutic Recreation are desirable
- Demonstrated experience in working with people with a diagnosis of dementia
- Sensitivity to, and understanding of, the needs of older people and in particular people with a diagnosis of dementia
- Sound understanding of relevant State and Commonwealth legislation as it applies to Aged Care providers

**About Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT)**

Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT) is a leading not-for-profit high-quality aged care provider. For 50 over years, our name has been trusted by the community to provide care and support services for thousands of people in over 40 locations across NSW and the ACT

At Southern Cross Care we believe that our purpose is to empower older people to "live life to the full". We offer a full continuum of personalised, expert services and adapt to meet the needs of each person and their family, providing aged care services through home care, retirement living and residential facilities. At SCC people are at the heart of everything we do.

We are a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to empower older people to 'live life to the full'. For the last 50 years our name has been trusted by the community to provide care and support for thousands of people in over 40 locations across NSW and the ACT.

We have a passion for providing the best care with clinical excellence. We offer person-centred care services to meet individual needs and preferences in residential aged care as well as in-home care. At SCC, people are at the heart of everything we do. We support our employees to excel