Lab Talk thursday at 14

On Thursday at 14 Rita Maldonado Branco will give a lab talk on: Communicating with people with dementia

Having two people in the family living with Alzheimer’s disease, Rita proposed informative and more empathetic ways of representing dementia, as well as tools to mediate and facilitate the communication between her grandparents and her family. Focusing on the social aspect of dementia her research project explores how design can enable people with dementia and their families to develop personalised strategies to communicate, and if this can have an effect on their overall wellbeing. With the support of dementia care specialists, the study draws upon ethnographic and participatory methods to get a deeper understanding of the experience of dementia and engage those diagnosed, in the design process. This will be the foundation for the development and evaluation of personalised tools to facilitate interaction between people with dementia and their families, as well as the organisation of a series of co-design sessions, looking for ways to enable this population can create their own means of communication.

Bio

Rita Maldonado Branco is a PhD student from the Doctoral Programme in Design from University of Porto and the Research Institute for Design, Media and Culture (ID+), Portugal. She completed her degree in Design at the University of Aveiro (2008) and graduated with distinction in MA Communication Design from Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London (2012). Rita has worked as a graphic designer for Francisco Providência Design Studio in Porto, and the Design Against Crime Research Centre and Minus 9 Design Studio in London.