Dr Mark Porter, presenter of the new Radio 4 programme Inside Health, visited the RICE Centre this week to get the views of Professor Roy Jones on a recent report that suggests problems with memory and cognition start earlier than previously thought. They discussed how changes in your brain can start from as early as your mid-forties.

Whilst there, Dr Porter took some of the tests of memory and thinking processes regularly used at RICE during their treatment and research studies into dementia. If you’d like to hear what happened, the programme will be aired on Tuesday 17^th January at 9pm. Inside Health is a new weekly series where Dr Porter demystifies the health issues that perplex us and separates the facts from the fiction.

If you missed the programme then you can hear it on BBC iPlayer

RICE has been chosen as one of 500 worldwide Centres of Excellence by the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG). The IAGG has a combined membership of 45,100 professionals in 65 countries focused on the ageing process and how it impacts on people’s quality of life.

The mission of the IAGG is to promote the highest levels of research and training worldwide in the study of all aspects of ageing and in association with the World Health Organisation they are recruiting the best research centres to help with future development programmes.

RICE was one of the few chosen from the initial selection process for centres in Europe.

The heart of the Government’s Big Society is encouraging social action; asking people to give their, money, skills and time to support good causes. A key element is volunteering, a concept upon which most charities already rely.

At RICE people can volunteer in many ways; by helping at the RICE Centre, fundraising and by participating in research programmes. In the past most of our volunteers have been ‘of a certain age’, but increased awareness of dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease has resulted in younger people wanting to support charities focused on older people. We have 3 such volunteers at RICE.

Lucy Mitchell and Claire Green are students at Bath Spa University. Lucy is a first year Business and Management student and Claire is in her second year studying Health Studies and Psychology. Lucy helps in the Fundraising office and is not a stranger to volunteering, “I’ve previously worked at a Sue Ryder shop, but now I’m in Bath I wanted to become more involved in the business side of running a charity. In the Fundraising office I get involved in many different areas. I knew a little about dementia but since being at RICE I have learnt so much more and realise how worthwhile the research is and how my volunteering can help.” Claire assists the office team in the busy reception area to keep the Memory Clinic running and ensuring everything is in its place. “I also have the chance to observe what happens in a research environment; gaining experience whilst giving something back is a great thing.”

Natasha Rowbotham is a recent graduate in Psychology from the University of Bath. She was very keen to gain experience with older adults, in particular those with dementia. She volunteers in the Memory Clinic, assisting with assessments. “In my final year of study at the University of Bath as a part of my clinical psychology module, I studied Dementia and Quality of Life in Older Adults and knew this was an area of research I would like to pursue. Volunteering is very much an accepted step in career progression. I give my time to a charity which might not otherwise be able to hire extra staff and in return I get excellent, supervised, clinical experience. Working for RICE is a rewarding way in which I can progress in my chosen career of Clinical Psychology, gain training and meet new friends and contacts.”

Sir Terry Pratchett and RICE Director Professor Roy Jones appeared in a feature in the Times Magazine on Saturday 13^th November, highlighting some of Britain’s top doctors.

The article is a celebration of the medical expertise found throughout the UK in our hospitals and universities and is the result of a team of Times researchers asking charities, specialists, professional bodies and associations over the past 6 months to come up with a list of leaders in their particular field.

In 2007 Sir Terry was diagnosed with Posterior Cortical Atrophy (PCA), a rare form of Alzheimer’s that attacks the back of the brain and affects visual processing. The Alzheimer’s Research Trust put him in touch with Professor Jones as a specialist in some of the more unusual forms of dementia.

“I like to think that, since they had some knowledge of me, they thought we would get on,” explained Sir Terry. “I’m glad I have a young, open-minded doctor. There are other sorts. I am lucky. Most people don’t have the luxury of choosing their doctor.”

The article highlights how the relationship is not only between patient and doctor, but also family and carer, with everyone needing to deal with the day to day challenges created by a dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Sir Terry Pratchett and Professor Roy Jones at the opening of the RICE Centre in 2008

Read more about RICE from our newsletters and previous news stories

The in Touch Project

Spring Newsletter 2011

Autumn Newsletter 2010

Memory Trail 2010

Summer Update 2010

London to Paris Bike Ride 2010

Dementia Awareness Campaign Launch 2010

The Bath Half Marathon 2010

Spring 2010

Autumn 2009

Spring 2009

Autumn 2008

Official Opening 2008

Spring 2008

Autumn 2007

Summer Update 2007

Spring 2007