Mp3 players help people living with dementia remain independent

A man with dementia has worked in collaboration with the Dementia Foundation to create a unique music product to help other people living with dementia enjoy a good quality of life and independent living.

Purple Angel Music was created by Devon based Norman McNamara, who founded Purple Angel Dementia, a dementia awareness campaign in Torquay while working with local singer-songwriter and businessman Ashley Sims.

Purple Angel Music is available pre-loaded on mp3 players with playlists in a range of styles including 60s, soul, country, show tunes, swing and rock and roll, with songs that can soothe and stimulate memories.

Norman McNamara lives in Torquay with his caregiver partner, Elaine and was diagnosed with Lewy Bodys Dementia seven years ago, at the age of 50.

Speaking about the project, he said: “For people living with dementia the progress of the disease can gradually turn off all the functions of the brain like lightbulbs going out. However memories of music are some of the deepest and last to be lost.”

Age UK reports that dementia is one of the UK’s more rapidly growing health and social challenges faced in the 21st Century with the number of cases predicted to reach more than one million by 2021.

Music has the power to unlock memories and encourage interaction which is crucial in dementia care. Purple Angel Music devices feature both music from specific genres and spoken prompts to ensure the listener remains hydrated and remembers to eat and wash, reducing the risk of dehydration and lack of nutrition.

The pre-loaded mp3 players feature songs by South West singer Michael Campari and familiar songs such as 'Love' by Nat King Cole with messages interspersed between the verses.

Concert violinist and academic, Professor Paul Robertson has conducted a study on behalf of Music Mind Spirit Trust and Musical Retreat. He said: “We tend to remain contactable as musical beings on some level right up to the very end of life.

“We know that the auditory system of the brain is the first to fully function at 16-weeks, which means that you are musically receptive long before anything else. So it’s a case of first in, last out when it comes to a dementia-type breakdown of memory.”

Since Purple Angel Music launched in August this year, it has become incredibly popular. Mr McNamara commented: “The idea has been well received mainly because there's nothing out there quite like it, sometimes however people have a tendency to wait to see what other people think or say about a product before they try and I fully understand that.

“The thought of setting up a system that automatically sets music playing every two hours (except at night when there's 12 hours of silence) can be quite strange but we've deliberately chosen slow, low-intro songs that gently come in and don't scare the person living with dementia.”

Interest in the project has come from across the globe from as far away as Spain with requests for a Latino and a Reggae playlist.

Speaking about the attention Purple Angel Music has received, Mr McNamara said: “One thing that I kind of expected to happen has, I recently did an interview for a Spanish speaking radio station in Los Angeles and they asked when there was going to be some Latino music choices, I informed them that slowly but surely we would cover all genres.”

So far, Purple Angel Music has sold nearly 100 units since the launch, with coverage of the project being featured in national newspapers, such as The Telegraph. Mr McNamara added: “It's only really been promoted heavily in the last month, but I never expected it to ‘boom’ due to the sensitivity of the nature of the business.

“I think with this project it's better to gently introduce it to people rather than hard sell, I'm very aware how dementia affects family members and it can be distressing if there's a perception of a hard sell.”

Speaking about the future of Purple Angel Music, he said: “What I think will happen is the care homes, both large and small will be the first ones to take it on a large scale, especially ones that offer a home care service too. In fact there's a very large one we are in discussions with at present – which we are super excited about. Then as people get used to seeing it they will want to take one home themselves.”

Despite a few initial teething-problems, the project has got off to a good start and now units come complete with a simple instruction leaflet for those who need it. Norman said: Of course there's profit in this idea, there has to be to develop it. For every unit we sell we donate £5 to Purple Angel Dementia Awareness Campaign.”

Each unit costs £39.99 and comes with one pre-loaded genre of music, and further genres are £10 each.

For more information, visit: http://www.purpleangel-global.com/ or pledge support to help fund improvements to Purple Angel Music at: http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/purpleangelmusic