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Alzheimer's Society Website | Alzheimer's Society Factsheets | Alzheimer's Society Helpline |
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| Advertising |
Advertising is not permitted on Talking Point. We do not accept posts from commercial organisations, their employees or families, which advertise or promote products or services. |
| Children and Talking Point |
The Talking Point forum, by its nature, contains content that is adult. A parent agreeing for their child to view and perhaps contribute to Talking Point must do so in the knowledge of the forums and their content. Talking Point is a public site on the Internet, so anyone - including a child - who has the means to browse the Web can explore parts of this forum. While anyone can view Talking Point, registration is necessary to be able to contribute to it. The registration process recognises a child of 13 or under if they enter their correct date of birth, and will not permit registration except by manual intervention.
As part of the registration process for a child of 13 or under, a parent or guardian's email address has to be provided. Notification of the child's intention to register on the Talking Point forum is then sent out by email to that address.
The email asks the child's parent or guardian to complete and sign the following form, before returning it to the Talking Point Manager at Alzheimer's Society. When the form has been received by the Talking Point Manager, the child's Talking Point account will be activated.
The following recommendations and information may also be helpful for parents:
There is a very helpful resource called Wisekids, which contains a host of materials that might also be usefully read by adults, who are often less up to speed on Internet matters than children. Netiquette is a particular topic in that category. A quote from the How to use the Internet Safely (a Guide for Parents) guidelines from this site is: "Talk to your children about the things that they may encounter online. Without scaring them, make them aware of chat room danger, web sites with inaccurate information, unsuitable material online and email from strangers. They should understand that people online are not always who they say they are." |
| Choosing a username |
If you register on the Talking Point forum, you will need to select a name to use that has not been registered already, as the forum will not permit multiple users with the same name, for obvious reasons. What not to use Because Talking Point is a fully public web forum, a username should never be selected that can identify the person using it. The username shouldn't be a variation of your real first and family name, for example. Neither should the name give any indication of the e-mail address of the person, or the telephone number, or the postal address. What to use The main thing about deciding on a username is that you have to be able to remember it yourself! Apart from that, anything that has not been used before and that is acceptable under the Talking Point rules [that is, should not be offensive, for example] should be ok. Please make sure that you are happy with the name you have chosen before you actually register it, as it cannot be changed afterwards. |
| Contacting Alzheimer’s Society |
Alzheimer's Society Central Office contact details are: Address: Tel: 0207 423 3500 Email: enquiries@alzheimers.org.uk To contact the Talking Point Manager, click on the 'Contact' tab at the bottom of this page, or email talkingpoint@alzheimers.org.uk |
| Copyright |
Members of Talking Point are welcome to post their original poems and images on the forum. However, please note that poems written, photographs taken or images produced by other people cannot be reproduced without the permission of the copyright holder (usually the author). Copyright applies to printed and recorded material, such as:
Such materials should not be reproduced in full, or in part, on Talking Point. Messages found to be in breach of copyright legislation will be edited as appropriate. You can find a complete description of copyright at the Intellectual Property Office: http://www.ipo.gov.uk/c-about.htm |
| Factsheets |
Alzheimer's Society factsheets provide information on a wide variety of topics relating to dementia: |
| Forgotten passwords |
Once you have registered a username and password with Talking Point, you can post messages and send private messages, and you can also see areas of the forum that are not available to guests. Should you forget your password, you will not be able to log in, and you will be able to use the forum only as a guest. If you forget your password, please email talkingpoint@alzheimers.org.uk, using the same email address as you did to register originally. In your email, sign off with your Talking Point username. The username, together with the email address, give a level of security to your request. When your password has been re-set, you will receive an email from Talking Point informing you of your new password. You will be able to change your password back to one of your own choosing via your 'User Control Panel', once you are logged back in to the forum. |
| Fundraising |
Talking Point supports and thanks people who are fundraising for Alzheimer's Society in the UK. Fundraisers for Alzheimer's Society are encouraged to use the JustGiving website: www.justgiving.com/alzheimerssoc/ to raise funds online. Supporters donating or pledging money through JustGiving can be assured that their money is going to help Alzheimer's Society in the UK. Talking Point members are not encouraged to donate to Alzheimer's Society online via any other site. Posts raising funds for causes other than Alzheimer's Society in the UK may be removed. |
| Journalists and media |
We ask journalists and writers who are researching material for books, articles or media stories to contact Alzheimer's Society's press office on press@alzheimers.org.uk. The media should not contact members of Talking Point directly. If a member receives a direct personal contact from anyone in the media, please refer them to Alzheimer's Society. |
| Key forum rules |
When a member registers on Talking Point, they must agree to Talking Point's 'terms and conditions of use' before they can post anything. In brief, here are the main conditions: General conditions
Using the forum
Products and services
Interpretation of the Terms and Conditions of UseFrequently, interpretation of Talking Point's 'Terms and Conditions of Use' requires judgement on the part of moderators and the administrator, as few situations are truly clear cut. As far as is reasonably possible, Talking Point will maintain a consistent stance in applying the 'Terms and Conditions of Use'. For example, individual members, including moderators, may have differing views on what constitutes something that is offensive, and a post that is offensive to one person, may not be to another. The responsibility for a final decision on interpreting the 'Terms and Conditions of Use' rests with the Talking Point Manager at Alzheimer's Society. |
| Moderators |
All volunteer moderators have personal experience of dementia, and as such, they may post into the forum exactly as other members do. When a moderator does so, their contribution carries the same weight as that of any other experienced member, no more - unless they make clear that their post is one of a moderating nature. Moderators have two main parts to their public moderating role:
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| Naming of organisations |
Health and care providersWhere you have had good or bad experience of health and care providers such as NHS facilities, care homes, or their staff - please do not name the organisations or associated individuals on the forum. You may not name the above organisations - no matter how strongly you feel. If you do name the organisation or a person then a moderator will edit the post to remove the reference, and warn you that you have contravened the rules. Repeated mentions after will result in public warnings and possible banning from Talking Point. Commercial organisationsMention on the public forum of good or bad treatment by named commercial organisations - places that supply goods and services such as banks - should be restricted, if possible, to descriptions such as:
or,
It may also be worth adding a caveat such as, 'this is my personal experience only.' Care needs to be taken in relaying one's experiences of organisations, both in terms of fairness, and from a legal standpoint. |
| Other sources of support |
Alzheimer's Society's factsheet, 'Voluntary Organisations', provides information on other sources of support: http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/factsheet/412 |
| Personal endorsements |
Personal endorsements of products or services that may be of benefit to our users may be permitted on this forum, but if you have any commercial interest please declare this openly and refer to our FAQ on Advertising. Alzheimer's Society does not endorse in any way, and expressly disclaims liability for any product, manufacturer, distributor, service or service provider mentioned or any opinion expressed in answers or comments in this area of the forum. |
| Privacy |
Talking Point is a public Internet forum and it is safest to retain privacy of identity and not reveal details such as your real name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, etc. Unless you wish to contribute to the forum, it is not necessary to register as a member because you can browse the content of the site as a guest. This way of using Talking Point is entirely anonymous, though you cannot contribute to forum content. If you wish to contribute to the forum, you must register to be a member of Talking Point. Registration is free, and requires a minimum amount of information to be given. Privacy of Talking Point members A member's identity should not be known by other members, as long as each member selects and uses their own unique username when contributing to the forum. Members are advised not to include anything that might identify them when they post on the forum, unless they have no concerns about their identity being recognised. Identity information can be communicated using Private Messages if you wish, but it is not generally recommended. The nature of any Internet forum is that it is not possible to know the background and motives of members, so it is strongly recommended that no personal details are made public on Talking Point. Please do not post messages encouraging others to disclose contact details about themselves. When such details appear, they will be removed by moderators for the safety of the person concerned. |
| Registering on the forum |
Before you can contribute anything to Talking Point you will need to register as a member. Once you have registered, your basic membership details will be available for other members to see. Nothing that can identify you is visible, unless you have used real personal information when registering - something that is strongly not recommended. |
| Reporting concerns |
Some messages posted on Talking Point might cause concern to some people, for example:
If you are concerned about any of the above, you can either contact the moderators via PM, or contact the Talking Point Manager at talkingpoint@alzheimers.org.uk You can report an offending post directly through the forum system To do this, you need to first find the warning symbol. To the right of the post number in a thread is a warning symbol:
Click the warning symbol and the message editor will appear. Type in your complaint about the other person's post and press 'Send Report'.
When you press 'Send Report', an e-mail message is sent to the Talking Point moderators. That e-mail will contain your own e-mail [not Private Message] address, although no reply will normally be sent there. Upon receiving your alert, the moderators will review the post in question and, if appropriate, take action. What will happen after I have reported my concerns? Your concerns will be considered by either the Talking Point Manager, by all moderators, or by all the moderators together with the Talking Point Manager, according to the nature of the concern. The concerns may be noted and the particular area more closely monitored for a while to learn more. You may receive a reply saying that your concern has been noted but that it is not considered necessary to take action or you may receive a reply that says your concern is being acted upon. If you feel that your concerns have not been addressed appropriately, or if your concerns relate to an area for which Alzheimer's Society is responsible, then you may wish to refer to Alzheimer's Society's complaints procedure. |
| Researchers and students |
We are responsible for ensuring that members' personal data is going to be used in an appropriate way by researchers and students. We can only ensure this if we either:
or
Anyone interested in posting a message about research - whether connected to Alzheimer's Society or not - should contact the Talking Point Manager before they post. This will hopefully help to avoid any confusion, whilst assuring members that the invitations to be involved in research that are posted here, have been checked out by Alzheimer's Society. Out of courtesy to Talking Point members, we request that researchers and students DO NOT contact people by private message about their work. Please post publicly in the 'Researchers, students and professionals' section of the forum. This allows people who may wish to help you, to do so. We cannot allow the forum to be used to recruit participants for any studies. We cannot allow researchers, students or professionals to ask Talking Point members for their personal contact details and strongly advise people not to give out any contact or personal information over the internet. Researchers and students may also find it helpful to contact Alzheimer's Society's library, the Dementia Knowledge Centre, at knowledgecentre@alzheimers.org.uk. |
| Sharing your story |
Sharing real life experience through the media is a crucial part of raising awareness of dementia. A single story can achieve more than a thousand facts or figures: it can give personal insight and achieve lasting change. This is why you can help. If you are living with dementia or caring for a person with dementia and are interested in sharing your story with the media, then Alzheimer's Society would like to hear from you. To find out more, please contact our press team at press@alzheimers.org.uk. |
| Terms and Conditions of Use of Talking Point |
IntroductionThese online forums are meant as a support group for peer-to-peer discussions, and are not an official channel for Alzheimer's Society. The moderator hosts are all volunteers, who are selected and recruited by Alzheimer's Society. 1. Purpose of Talking Point
2. Conduct Expected of Users
3. Postings and Messages
4. Moderation and Banning
5. Privacy and Data Protection
6. Notice of Action and Changes to Terms & Conditions
7. Exclusion of Liability
8. Definitions
If you have any comments or complaints about Talking Point or any of its members, please write to talkingpoint@alzheimers.org.uk. Terms and Conditions of Use: Last updated 12 May 2009 |
| Top tips when posting |
Don't reply unknowingly to an old thread: Before you reply to any post, always check the date of the last message that was posted there. You will find the date and time of each post at the top left. Remember that Talking Point is a public forum: Whilst Talking Point is a supportive community, remember that anything you post in the public forum can be viewed by anyone with access to the Internet. Never post information that might help someone identify you or where you live. Ensure you abide by the forum rules: i.e. please don't use foul language or insults; don't name care providers or individual staff associated with them; don't promote a product with which you are associated; and don't 'hijack' a thread by taking it off-topic. Remember that Talking Point members often post at times of stress: This can lead to mis-understandings and sometimes, conflict. |
| What is Talking Point? |
Talking Point is an online support and discussion forum, for anyone affected by dementia. It's a place to ask for advice, share information, join in discussions and - most of all - feel supported. Anyone can visit the forum as a guest, and browse its content. If you would like to communicate with others and ask your own questions, you will need to register as a member. The forum is managed by Alzheimer's Society and supported by volunteer moderators. Talking Point is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Talking Point is not:
The main purpose of Talking Point is to support people affected by dementia. Other matters, such as active campaigning and soap-boxing, are welcome as long as:
Moderators will move or delete contributions that disrupt the benefits that the majority of members gain from Talking Point. |
| Who is Talking Point for? |
Talking Point is here for anyone who is affected by dementia. The forum is public, and thus most content may be viewed by anyone who has an Internet connection and a browser. Some content is able to be viewed only by registered members, and only registered members may contribute to the content of the forum. |