Dr Frances Duffy
Dr Frances Duffy is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist & NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Fellow, specialising in dementia care, with over 15 years’ experience supporting people living with dementia, their families and care teams across health and social care.
Her work focuses on helping staff and carers understand distress in dementia, recognise what a person may be experiencing, and respond in ways that reduce fear and escalation, and support safer, more compassionate care.
Clinical Roots
Frances brings over 15 years of experience in older people’s mental health, specialising in dementia diagnosis, post-diagnostic support and rehabilitation following delirium
Real World Insight
Through close work with people living with dementia, families and care staff, she saw how distress was often misunderstood not through lack of compassion, but through lack of shared psychological understanding.
Practice-informed care
Her clinical experience directly shaped the development of practical frameworks that support consistent, psychologically informed responses in everyday care.
Why training needed to change
“Good intentions aren’t enough without practical psychological tools.”
Families and staff wanted to provide the best possible care. Yet without a consistent framework, responses could unintentionally increase fear or confusion.
Frances recognised that dementia training needed to go beyond theory, helping people understand the person’s experience and respond in ways that support safety, dignity and independence.
From face-to-face, to scaleable impact
For many years, Frances delivered face-to-face training across health and social care. While effective, this model was hard to sustain.
Staff turnover and challenges faced by organisations releasing staff for training meant teams often lacked a shared language and approach.
The result was fragmentation, and missed opportunities to reduce distress earlier.
Creating 6D Dementia
Frances has also received support from Invest NI and InterTrade Ireland.
CALMER RESPONSES.
FEWER CRISES.
BETTER EXPERIENCES.
Impact today
6D Dementia equips staff and families with practical, evidence-based skills to respond to dementia-related distress with empathy, confidence and consistency.
The approach supports:
- Earlier understanding and de-escalation
- Reduced crisis escalation and avoidable admissions
- Reduced inappropriate antipsychotic use
- Greater workforce confidence, wellbeing and retention
The result is improved quality of life for people living with dementia and measurable benefits for organisations and systems.
“Built with carers and staff, for real-world care.”
Leadership & Contribution
Frances works closely with NHS trusts, local authorities, voluntary organisations, and care providers to embed sustainable, psychologically informed approaches to dementia care, helping teams across health and social care deliver consistent, person-centred support and improve outcomes for people living with dementia.
She has authored best-practice guidelines for the Public Health Agency and the British Psychological Society, contributed to the Northern Ireland Regional Dementia Care Pathway, and provided expert support to the Department of Health’s Enhancing Clinical Care in Care Homes programme, ensuring that guidance and initiatives are grounded in practical, real-world experience.
In addition to her programme work, Frances serves on national committees for the British Psychological Society and the Association of Clinical Psychologists, contributing to policy, professional standards, and the ongoing development of evidence-based approaches to dementia care.
EVIDENCE, ETHICS & COMPASSION AT THE CORE
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