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Our Approach

The Connect Method®

Understanding what’s changing. Discovering what can help. Supporting living well with dementia.

Why I created Connect at Home

​​​From Research to Real Life

When I was running group cognitive stimulation programs, families often asked me:

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​"How can we create this connection at home?"​

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Those questions inspired me to create Cognitive Connections™, a simple, step by step program families can use at home. It provides meaningful activities and conversations that engage thinking and language skills, while creating opportunities for confidence and connection with the people who matter most.

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Over more than 25 years, families have taught me that they don’t want complex information.

They want things explained in a way that is simple, easy to understand and practical to use.

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They also want to help their person keep living well, while looking after their own wellbeing along the way.

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In creating my programs, I take what we know from research and neurological rehabilitation and turn it into practical ideas and clear guidance that families can use in everyday life to support living well together.

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"No one explained things the way you did.

Everything finally made sense"

Connection is at the Heart of Our Approach

We focus on supporting the whole person, their strengths, relationships and everyday life, helping everyone feel connected, supported and heard, with the understanding they need to make informed decisions.

The Connect Method® focuses on four important areas:

  • Family and Friends

  • Identity, Strengths and Abilities

  • Healthcare and Support Teams

  • Brain Health and Function

Why These Principles Matter

Cognitive Stimulation
 

Cognitive Stimulation has been shown to support benefits for cognition, communication, relationships & quality of life.²

Neurorehabilitation
Principles

Neurorehabilitation focuses on the brain's capacity to learn, adapt and respond to experiences, supporting function.

Relaitionship Centred Approaches

Our programs build understanding, offer choice and strengthen connections with family and others.

Research behind the Connect Method

The Research Behind Our Approach

Cognitive Stimulation Therapy

Cognitive stimulation is an internationally researched approach that supports thinking and quality of life for people living with dementia.¹

Supporting Thinking & Communication

Cognitive stimulation engages thinking skills commonly affected by dementia, including communication, attention, memory and problem solving.¹˒³˒⁴

Neuroplasticity & Neurorehabilitation

Neurorehabilitation draws on the brain’s capacity to learn, adapt and respond through meaningful activity and experience.²˒⁶

More Than Thinking Skills

Research has found benefits of cognitive stimulation across cognition, language and quality of life.¹˒⁵˒⁶

Cognitive Stimulation at Home

Research into family delivered cognitive stimulation has identified potential benefits for communication, relationships and carer quality of life.⁴

References

 

  1. Desai, R., Leung, W. G., Fearn, C., John, A., Stott, J., & Spector, A. (2024). Effectiveness of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) for mild to moderate dementia: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials using the original CST protocol. Ageing Research Reviews, 97, 102312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arr.2024.102312

  2. Thoft, D. S., Grarup, B., & Mortensen, A. (2025). A scoping review of the effect and experience of participating in dementia rehabilitation when living with early stage dementia. Western Journal of Nursing Research. (Add volume, issue and page numbers if available in your article.)

  3. Paggetti, A., Druda, Y., Sciancalepore, F., Della Gatta, F., Ancidoni, A., Locuratolo, N., Piscopo, P., Vignatelli, L., Sagliocca, L., Guaita, A., Secreto, P., Stracciari, A., Caffarra, P., Vanacore, N., Fabrizi, E., Lacorte, E., … Porrello, M. C. (2025). The efficacy of cognitive stimulation, cognitive training, and cognitive rehabilitation for people living with dementia: A systematic review and meta-analysis. GeroScience, 47(1), 409–444. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-024-01400-z

  4. Jiménez-Palomares, M., Montero-Barrero, O., Garrido-Ardila, E. M., Gibello-Rufo, A., González-Sánchez, B., & Rodríguez-Mansilla, J. (2025). Cognitive stimulation in older adults with dementia: A systematic review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 14(20), 7225. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14207225

  5. Kitwood, T. (1997). Dementia reconsidered: The person comes first. Open University Press.

  6. Puderbaugh, M., & Emmady, P. D. (2023). Neuroplasticity. In StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557811/

  7. Stern, Y. (2012). Cognitive reserve in ageing and Alzheimer's disease. The Lancet Neurology, 11(11), 1006–1012. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-4422(12)70191-6

​Reference List:

​.​

  1. Desai, R., Leung, W. G., Fearn, C., John, A., Stott, J., & Spector, A. (2024). Effectiveness of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) for mild to moderate dementia: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis of randomised control trials using the original CST protocol. Ageing research reviews, 97, 102312. Retrieved June 19, 2026, from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arr.2024.102312​

  2. Puderbaugh, M., & Emmady, P. D. (2026). Neuroplasticity. In StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing. Retrieved June 19, 2026, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557811/

  3. Kitwood, T. (1997). Dementia Reconsidered: The Person Comes First. Open University Press.

  4. Thoft, D. S., Grarup, B., & Mortensen, A. (2025). A scoping review of the effect and experience of participating in dementia rehabilitation when living with early stage dementia. Western Journal of Nursing Research

  5. Paggetti, A., Druda, Y., Sciancalepore, F., Della Gatta, F., Ancidoni, A., Locuratolo, N., Piscopo, P., Vignatelli, L., Sagliocca, L., Guaita, A., Secreto, P., Stracciari, A., Caffarra, P., Vanacore, N., Fabrizi, E., Lacorte, E., Caffarra, P., Guaita, A., Secreto, P., … Porrello, M. C. (2025). The efficacy of cognitive stimulation, cognitive training, and cognitive rehabilitation for people living with dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. GeroScience: Official Journal of the American Aging Association (AGE), 47(1), 409–444. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-024-01400-z

  6. Jiménez-Palomares, M., Montero-Barrero, O., Garrido-Ardila, E. M., Gibello-Rufo, A., González-Sánchez, B., & Rodríguez-Mansilla, J. (2025). Cognitive Stimulation in Older Adults with Dementia: A Systematic Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 14(20), 7225. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14207225

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