John & I had the pleasure of seeing several older friends over this past weekend. They included current & past clients, plus the mother of a longtime buddy. Our visit marked the first time we'd seen her since her move from her senior residence's Personal Care (PC) area to it's Dementia floor.
It was a disquieting experience.
The physical environment is surprisingly different in the two areas. In the PC area, the space across from the elevators has a beautiful wooden console cabinet with a stuffed-cushioned chair on either side. A lovely painting hangs over the cabinet & it's decorated in accordance with the time of year - St. Patrick's Day, spring, 4th of July. Always made me smile. The soothing scene says, "Welcome!"
Walk out of the elevator, look to the left for the Activity Room, its long cabinet ranging along the entire visible wall, laden with interesting projects & books, a large monitor for watching t.v. & videos centered above it. The vibe says, "People have fun here!"
Look across to the right to what seems to be the door to an apartment, with another stuffed-cushioned chair outside it, a hallway branching off to its right. Cozy. It says, "Folks live here."
Walk a few steps to the main hallway & head down to where the older friend lived. To your right, about halfway down the wide hall, is a comfy couch that looks just right for several friends to settle down for a nice gab. It says, "Let's casually socialize!"
Just writing about it makes me smile - it is a pleasure to see so many "best practices" decorating touches, small things that make a big difference to the older people living there.
It's wrenching to leave this warm & welcoming area to go to her new floor, reserved for residents experiencing dementia.
Across from the elevator doors there is one painting on the wall. It is large & lovely, with nice colors. But right next to it is a framed, officious looking certificate of some sort. The exact same certificate might be on the other floor too, but its presence is not so glaring. A beautiful painting marred by an ugly document.
Look to the left. The room is larger than the PC Activity Room. Half of the room is used for group activities like chair yoga & ball play, the other half - out of sight line - is for dining. There is no sign of human activity. Just a sterile space.
Look to the right - there is the attendants' station, usually cloaked in what seems like half-light.
Walk down to our older friend's room & the wide hall is empty, no couch or anything to sit on.
Except for the lovely inset shelved memory boxes outside each doorway, nothing about this area says anything welcoming or warm.
Out of view is the area where the floor residents gather - what feels like a large alcove where they congregate to watch television & not be alone. It chills John, how bleak it felt to him.
No pun intended, but the difference between the two areas floors me. The one is almost jovial, so welcoming. The other - my main memories are not of its lovely yellow hallways & beautiful, well-designed apartments, but of chilly grey.
When it comes to the nuts & bolts of elder care, I am not any sort of credentialed expert. That said, I do recall what Elizabeth C. Brawley wrote about the impact of environment on folks with dementia:
Different parts of the country and different cultures may designate household rooms differently, but almost no one grew up with a day room or nurse’s station as part of their traditional home environment.
It certainly seems like the designers responsible for the overall residence are aware of Betsy Brawley's work. For example, they are taking steps to make better use of the outdoor living areas, building sitting spaces near the remnants of a woods & a nice pergola off one of the dining areas so people can take their meals outside. And there are memory boxes, as she recommends, outside each apartment's doorway.
But they seem to have totally missed the boat when it comes to the all-important, overall environment of the Dementia Care area. Compare the sense between where our older friend lived with where she is now. Do the hallways, the social areas feel home-like, is there anything that would give the residents a sense of familiarity, a hook back to their old selves & earlier lives? What in those areas is there to enhance socializing, to strengthen friendships?
I didn't see it. Nor did John.
Okay - I promised no more sob stories about problems around aging. Promised to focus on solutions. So here some that this non-designer would offer:
- Have the space across from the elevators mirror what's on the other floors.
- Place arrangements of silk flowers on the counter in the Activity/Dining Room to create a pretty sight for anyone looking to their left.
- Change the attendants' station lighting to something brighter, warmer. Make the counter space more attractive.
- Put a comfy sofa in the hallway!
- If they can't move the awful oversized alcove that's used as a ghastly gathering spot, do something to improve it. It's depressing.
Maybe there's a safety issue with chairs & sofas being available in areas other than that dinky alcove. Maybe they want the dementia residents to be in their rooms or in the one space, because the are no sitting areas that I could spot in the hallways. If it's not an issue - SET OUT CHAIRS & AT LEAST ONE COZY COUCH!
Whatever their age, anyone experiencing dementia deals every day with unimaginable challenges. As do their families & loved ones, who want to make sure that they are in a place that will provide the care they need in an environment that makes them feel safe, secure & as comforted as possible.
No one should be as floored as we were this weekend!
These
include the use of personalized memorabilia displayed in a memory box
outside the bedroom to help residents identify their own rooms.17 - See
more at:
http://www.annalsoflongtermcare.com/content/improving-physical-environments-dementia-care-making-minimal-changes-maximum-effect#sthash.nYpVhAJA.dpuf
These
include the use of personalized memorabilia displayed in a memory box
outside the bedroom to help residents identify their own rooms.17 - See
more at:
http://www.annalsoflongtermcare.com/content/improving-physical-environments-dementia-care-making-minimal-changes-maximum-effect#sthash.nYpVhAJA.dpuf
These
include the use of personalized memorabilia displayed in a memory box
outside the bedroom to help residents identify their own rooms.17 - See
more at:
http://www.annalsoflongtermcare.com/content/improving-physical-environments-dementia-care-making-minimal-changes-maximum-effect#sthash.nYpVhAJA.dpuf
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