A store manager has spoken of his pride in staff who came to the aid of a shopper with dementia.
Phil Thompson, manager at Sainsbury’s Shorehead store in Huddersfield, paid tribute to Kulbir Lally and Gaynor Strangeway for their caring approach.
The Examiner reported previously how an elderly woman was found in a confused and distressed state in store on Sunday.
The woman had a trolley of shopping and a bunch of flowers but had forgotten what to do next.
Customer services manager Kulbir and general merchandise manager Gaynor saw the woman becoming increasingly upset and went to help.
They took her into the cafe and gave her tea and a toasted teacake and looked after her. With concerns about the woman’s well-being they called police and officers later took her home.
The anxious woman tightly gripped the hand of a policeman all the way home.
The story was revealed by Kirklees Rural Neighbourhood Policing Team on Facebook and the story has been seen by a staggering 1.5 million people.
Mr Thompson praised the actions of his staff and said: “It’s quite ironic that only last week our staff had some training on disability awareness.
“This centred on how to spot ‘unconscious disabilities’ such as people with dementia or hearing difficulties, and how to approach people and help them.
“It’s fantastic what Kulbir and Gaynor did.”
Staff spoke to the woman who was in a confused state and didn’t have her purse or any means of paying.
Mr Thompson said: “The lady was very upset and didn’t know why she was there or what she should do next. We tried to comfort her but we were concerned she didn’t have anybody at home to look after her so we called the police.”
Store staff looked after the woman for four hours. The frightened woman had to be persuaded that it was safe to go in the police car.
PC Dave Cant, from Holmfirth Police Station, befriended the woman who held his hand tightly all the way home.
PC Sally Baines, of Kirklees Rural NPT, said the woman lived in supported housing and had been reported missing by carers.
She said West Yorkshire Police was a “dementia friendly” force and most officers and staff had been specially trained as “dementia friends.”
PC Baines said that sadly dealing with dementia-related calls was increasingly common and said they were never easy and were often upsetting for everyone concerned.
She added: “You could say it is ‘all part of the job’ but it’s a part of the job that a lot of people don’t expect us to be dealing with. Our primary function as police is to protect those most vulnerable in our society and to help where we can.”
PC Baines said the story had been seen by 1.5 million people on Facebook and had 40,000 ‘likes.’
“It’s amazing and it’s really nice to be able to share stories with happy endings,” she said.
“It’s not all doom and gloom out there and I think people need to be reminded of that sometimes.”
PC Cant is described as “publicity shy” but PC Baines added: “He is a fantastic police officer and this example is him all over. He is naturally a very caring person.”
