Dementia Unit Design
Posted by Heather on September 5th, 2007 / 
Print This Post
Special Dementia Programs and building design make for a more meaningful admission to a nursing home- if there is such a thing.
After Gail Aylward was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, she moved into a condo with her brother and daughter. A few years later, she started to wander.
[...]
Once thought of as cold, sterile environments, many nursing homes are trying to feel more like home. And, within the cozier settings are features to make life easier for patients.
At Dillworth, brightly painted doorways point out where walls end and patient rooms begin.Parc Provence in Creve Coeur, the area’s only nursing home exclusively for people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, arranges patient areas in a circular pattern. The formations eliminate blind corners that can be unsettling to these patients, said Dr. David Carr, medical director at Parc Provence.
Many Alzheimer’s patients lose weight or become dehydrated because they struggle to eat independently. At Dillworth, fire-engine red plates help patients distinguish mashed potatoes and chicken from the plate itself. Parc Provence prepares food on each floor so the aromas will stimulate patients’ appetites.
To keep patients from leaving the unit, Dillworth has carpet squares near the door that are arranged like a checkerboard. To an Alzheimer’s patient, the different colors make the floor appear uneven, so patients steer clear.
There’s also an effort to recreate family life. Patients can bake cookies, do laundry, set the table or exercise. While folding towels, the ladies will often reminisce about their lives before Alzheimer’s.
One thing not mentioned too often in these articles is the activity programs. They must be altered to work with this special population. The everyday average activity program doesn’t serve our Dementia residents well; I have been very impressed with the programming offered at most special care units like this.
September 16th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Hi i am a CNA supervisor at a wonderful nursing home and i love it, They do so much stuff with the residents like baking sewing bingo
debbie
games cards crafts you name it they do it with the residents and they love it too. I did like the idea of the carpet tiles to keep them from trying to leave (GREAT)!