Prof Ritchie is the Professor of Psychiatry of Ageing at the University of Edinburgh and Director of Edinburgh Dementia Prevention

Prof Ritchie is the Professor of Psychiatry of Ageing at the University of Edinburgh and Director of Edinburgh Dementia Prevention, having moved from his role as Senior Lecturer in the Centre for Mental Health at Imperial College London in October 2014. 

In 2016, he was appointed as Associate Director of the Edinburgh Clinic Research Facility (CRF) and elected Chair of the Scottish Dementia Research Consortium (SDRC) in 2017.

He has driven forward on his commitment to promote and grow that consortium to assist Scotland and Scottish based researchers from all over the world to achieve its objectives and theirs. His primary research interest is in the maintenance of brain health in mid-life to mitigate the risks of initiation and progression of degenerative brain diseases that may lead to dementia. To achieve this he leads as Chief Investigator on the EPAD (European Prevention of Alzheimer’s Dementia) Programme, the PREVENT Dementia Project and the Scottish Brain Health Register. 

Most recently he was appointed as an Associate Director of DPUK2 (Dementias Platform UK).

Professor June Andrews is an authoritative dementia expert with a focus on improving the public understanding of dementia.

Most of her clinical career has been working with older people and people with mental health problems. For ten years she was the director of a university team that supported people with dementia and their caregivers with information, consultancy and training based on research evidence about what is practical and makes a difference. She is a Fellow of the Royal College of Nursing, and has been recognised as one of the most influential clinicians in the UK.

As a professor emeritus she now advises the Dementia Services Development Trust, a charity that focuses on disrupting popular misconceptions about dementia. Her book, Dementia; what you need to know, and its UK version, Dementia the One Stop Guide have been described as, “Exactly what is needed. Sensible advice from someone who knows what she is talking about.”

Her blog posts are sometimes controversial, but her independence means that she can speak out when others aren’t able. She says, “The dementia field these days is crowded, and frequently competitive or even combative. Everyone has the right to be heard. Even me.”

Dr Stephen Judd has more than 25 years’ experience in the health care and information technology industries.

Stephen has been Chief Executive of HammondCare since 1995.

When he began, HammondCare served fewer than 250 clients and had an annual revenue of $8 million. Today, it provides care to more than 25,000 people with an annual revenue of $303 million. He has written and contributed to books on dementia care, aged care design and the role of charities. Stephen has served on numerous government and industry committees and is currently a member of the Advisory Council of the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and the Aged Care Standards Review Technical Advisory Group.

Mary Jane Grant provides sign language interpreting services to deaf communities in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

Mary Jane Grant, born to Deaf parents, has been a member of the Maine Deaf community since childhood. Currently, she provides sign language interpreting services to deaf communities in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

Certified since 1999 through (the) Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), she has experiences working in an array of settings and with a widely diverse clientele, including the Maine State Legislature, the Dept of Labor, DHHS, DOT and other state entities as well as a broad range of community work ranging from educational to corporate and theatrical settings.

Lenny ‘the dementia friendly barber’ will be joining our conference line up.

Lenny, who worked previously in sales and marketing, had a change of direction a few years ago and trained to become a barber. He is the world's first mobile dementia-friendly barber to go around care homes in Northern Ireland and provide a tailored barber service – challenging the beauty salon concept, providing a personalised experience for men. But it’s about more than just the barbering – it is about the experience. Visit his website. 

Emi Kiyota is the founder and director of Ibasho, an organization that facilitates the co-creation with elders of socially integrated, sustainable communities that value their elders.

John Swinton is Professor in Practical Theology and Pastoral Care in the School of Divinity, Religious Studies and Philosophy at the University of Aberdeen. 

The foundation for much of John’s research and teaching has emerged from his background in nursing, ministry and healthcare chaplaincy. He has published extensively within the areas of ageing, dementia, mental health and illness, spirituality, human well-being and the theology and spirituality of disability. John’s latest book ‘Becoming Friends of Time’ will form a central part of his plenary paper.