DEMENTIA staff at Poole Hospital have expressed their thanks to generous donors who have knitted and donated more than 1,000 ‘memory mitts’ since the appeal was launched in December.

The mittens are simple knitted cuffs to which a range of items, including ribbons, buttons or beads, can be sown - providing something for patients with dementia to ‘twiddle’ to reduce anxiety.

Because each mitt can only be used once per patient an appeal was launched through the Echo and on social media using the hashtag #knitamitt for as many donations as possible.

The 1,000th mitt arrived this week, which is also national Dementia Awareness Week.

Kate Jones, dementia nurse specialist, said: “When we launched the appeal in December I was hoping for a few hundred mitts, but to receive more than 1,000 has been fantastic.

“On behalf of our patients I’d like to say a huge thank you to every individual, organisation and business who have taken the time to knit a mitt and help someone in hospital with dementia.”

Details on how to knit a mitt can be found on www.poole.nhs.uk.