Show Notes
What if we've confused keeping people safe with giving them a good life? Meet Teun Toebes, Dutch healthcare innovator, author and dementia advocate on a mission to change how the world lives with dementia. At 21, most of us are figuring out what to do with our lives - but Teun decided to move into a locked dementia ward in the Netherlands. Not as a patient, and not as a carer, but as a housemate. For three and a half years, he shared his life with people whose voices are too often overlooked. His experience sparked an international movement, a documentary called Human Forever, and a campaign to open the doors of locked nursing homes.
But this isn't simply a story about changing aged care. It's about friendship, freedom, dignity, and the extraordinary things that can happen when we stop defining people by what they've lost. (Podcast Image Credit: Teun with housemate. Stan Heerkens)
In this episode: Why a 21-year-old nurse decided to move into a locked dementia ward What three and a half years living alongside people with dementia taught him How football, a motorcycle and a very fast speedboat can change the end of a life Why good intentions don't always lead to a good quality of life What communities in South Africa and an intergenerational school in America can teach us about dementia The Open the Doors movement and the push to rethink locked nursing home wards How living alongside people with dementia changed his understanding of death, grief and what it means to be human Timestamps: 00:00 The Housemate 00:57 Meet Teun Toebes 03:26 Why a 21-year-old moved into a dementia ward 06:05 Zero Risk, Zero Life 08:19 Becoming a Housemate 11:31 Motorcycles, Speedboats and Friendship with Art 13:24 Midpoint Reflections 15:50 What Happens When You Challenge the System? 17:42 What If a Nursing Home Is Your Only Option? 19:37 Human Forever: Rethinking Dementia Around the World 23:18 Open the Doors: Freedom vs. Safety 26:17 Dementia Rights Are Human Rights 27:31 What Families Need to Know About Dementia 28:47 What Happens When All Your Housemates Die? 30:48 The Power of Paying Attention 32:02 Final Reflections
Curious to find out more? 👉 Explore Teun's documentary, Human Forever 👉 Discover Teun's books, including The Housemates 👉 Support his work through Article 25 Foundation
About Fix The News: Fix The News is a solutions-focused media platform sharing stories from the frontlines of progress - exploring what’s working in the world and the people making it happen.
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Production credits: Hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose Produced by Fix The News Audio production: Anthony Badolato, Hear That!
This episode was produced in Australia on the lands of the Gadigal, Wurundjeri and Woi Wurrung peoples.
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