The Danish May Bjerre Eiby had to experience how badly her demented father was cared for in a home. That’s why she opened her own facility – with a slightly different concept. A conversation about humanity and what people with dementia need.
Interview by
Johanna Adorjan
Six years ago she founded a nursing home for people with dementia in Denmark, Dagmarsminde, with a concept that is as radical as it is simple: the Danish nurse May Bjerre Eiby, 40. In the documentary “Compassion – Rethinking Care” by director Louise Detlefsen ( from 23 September in the cinema) you can see that the residents are treated differently here than anywhere else. Detlefsen has visited the home with a small film team for more than two years and created a portrait of the residents and caregivers is incredibly touching. Sure, it doesn’t sound tempting to go to the cinema to see a 90-minute film about Danish people with dementia – but neither will you: “Compassion – Rethinking Care” is a film about what it means to be human. Not less.