The Danish Centre of Reminiscence was established in 1997. The center is an institution under Danish Seniors (Danske Seniorer). The main task of the centre is to evoke and deal with the memories of elderly people, inspired by the reminiscence work from the English-speaking world. The center is a place of resource for elderly, including the frail groups, e.g. people with dementia.
The center lends out reminiscence boxes nationwide. Besides the center is heading an extensive lecture and training activity all over the country.
The work at the Danish Centre of Reminiscence has up to now built on a number of developing projects. These projects are about:
- Reminiscence activity for elderly people with dementia.
- Reminiscence activity for younger people with dementia (between 50-65).
- Development of reminiscence boxes for elderly immigrants.
- Use of life history and reminiscence activity in the daily work on a department in a nursing home.
- A nationwide questionnaire- and interview search on special activity for weak elderly men, e.g. men with dementia.
- Information for all Danish libraries about reminiscence activity in the dementia area.
- Use of reminiscence in an institution for people with brain injury.
On an international scale the centre took part in the European cooperation project “Remembering yesterday – caring today” (1998) in which people from ten different countries worked with reminiscence in relation to people with dementia living at home and their families. The result of the project was, among other things, the publication of the first handbook in Danish about the use of reminiscence within the dementia care.
Concerning a more scientific evaluation of reminiscence the Danish Centre of Reminiscence handles the teaching part of a scientific study for the valuation of the reminiscence method at institutions for elderly/ residential homes. Ten residential homes were part of this study (five with intervention and five as a control group), and the Centre for Applied Health Services Research and Technology Assessment (CAST) within the University of Southern Denmark was in charge of the research.
The Centre of Reminiscence has also in the past couples of years been working with furnishing of recognizable and homelike environments at a number of nursing homes and day centers. The work has taken place in close cooperation with staff, family, and volunteers. The work also included development and setting up of decorations in the corridors based on the story of the residents.
The centre has also developed digital reminiscence boxes displayed on our website; pictures of old photos, triggers, advertisement, quotations etc. The first digital box is called “At the grossers”.