Dear conference attendees, you’re the first getting these tips, the Really Good Ones for the top issues ringing through our recent tour with CALA.
When confronted with the out-loud question posed by my colleague Dorothy Passarella, “What are your issues working with Alzheimer’s and dementia residents?” a stillness of thought permeated the room. Soon the room was popcorn-ing with comments, and once folks began talking we could hear a recurring theme, “working with the families.”
We know from painful experience that aging and dementia happen not just to one individual, but to their entire family who love and tended them to the brink of what they can handle. They are at the ends of their ropes when they come to us. We’re caregivers not only for the elders. The families need our care too.
How to begin the delicate conversations that can help move and heal families through their feelings of denial and frustration and anxiety and just plain fear? We spoke of the personal space of each of us, and the qualities of safety, calmness, and agitation that can be aroused as we share our community spaces together through movement and other sensory activities. How can use this knowledge to help the families?
We asked for a show of hands for which communities hosted Family Support Groups. Although less than half raised their hands, interest and good intentions to start such programs seemed universal. How to implement such a program was a question left hanging in the air for a future conversation.
I have a few good ideas to get things moving for you. You can get started right away with these straightforward tips.
• Stretch your Wellness program to include the families of residents in health, art, and movement events. Include multi-generational events to help families feel at home. Movement will free up the voice and the feelings and is a good start to any gathering. I can even come and give you a kick-start with our Agile Aging Wellness Partner program, and if you look around you certainly have talented people in your midst to build a worthwhile education series.
• Add a regular monthly Family Club with a trained counselor facilitating a short seminar and/or video and discussion and a nice meal.
• Be the first on your block to screen this heart-felt film (10 minutes) that humanizes our loved ones with dementia, Ten Glorious Seconds, that just launched last week. Be a community leader in bringing latest news and media to share and open the door to those invaluable conversations. (If you follow my tweets on Twitter I am good with relaying special “buzz” that’s out there in our field.)
In my next blogs, I’ll be talking a lot more about activities for men with Agile Aging, and how to Green Your Program.
Valerie Baadh Garrett, from Agile Aging, your Movement Mentor with dynamic wellness and movement programs for all mature adults.
Read more at www.agileaging.org
The Silver Tsunami – Senior Living Industry Grapples With Key Issues for the Future
February 21, 2011
Over the past few weeks I’ve met staff and caregivers from scores of senior living communities across California while sharing New Sensory Activities for Alzheimer’s and Dementia. We heard some strong recurring themes from you, the Executive Directors, Administrators, Nursing and Activities staff members working with the elderly.
Issue #1. You are preparing for the “silver tsunami” of Alzheimer’s and other dementia residents that will be heading your way in the future. If you don’t already have a special wing or residence for this growing population, you will. Your corporate offices are fast-tracking the development of such residences. Many communities are scrambling to meet the demand. For some, this means considering converting existing assisted living wings into Memory Care. For many communities, there are vacancies in Assisted Living (some at 60% although I met some at 100% occupancy) while Memory Care centers are likely full with waiting lists. Families are keeping their loved ones at home as long as they can, but often a crisis in caregiving leads to urgent need for placement in special-care residences, maybe yours. Just how will you meet the demand?
Issue #2. How to work with the families who are often in denial and in need of their own healing care was a major issue, spoken at every one of our workshops. A first step might be to Contact the Alzheimer’s Association’s page for Family Support groups, start one, and be the first in California to get on the list. (No kidding, there are no groups in California listed, so, why not be first?)
Issue #3. How to better engage the men in meaningful activities was another question we heard. This is the theme of next week’s first blog which gives you some terrific new ideas and links to explore, with “green” inspiration from around the world.
Issue #4. How can we remember these movement activities and bring them back to our staff and residents? That’s easy! Our Wellness Partner Program gives you all that and more. Some of what we did is on our DVD series, and the CDs will refresh your memories too.
Issue #5. How is Agile Aging and California Assisted Living Association helping to look at the silver tsunami that’s building. With assisted living demand project to double by 2020, how are we planning?
I’ll make some suggestions in my next blogs this week and next.
Next up: Top Tips for Working With Families
by Valerie Baadh Garrett from Agile Aging, your Movement Mentor, with dynamic wellness programs for mature adults and communities
Subscribe at www.agileaging.org
Active Aging Week Brainstorm – Ideas You Can Use!
July 28, 2010
Brainstorming Pays Off for Active Aging Week
In July I hosted a couple of conference calls, inviting folks to join me in brainstorming ideas for low-cost, high-value events for your community during Active Aging Week, September 20 – 26, 2010. Some of the best ideas I’m sharing here. In case you don’t know, the American Council on Active Aging (ACAA), a non-profit advocacy organization, hosts this week each year, and offers support in order to engage individuals and organizations in their mission, activity for seniors. ACAA offers pre-written PR, media releases, nation-wide visibility with their online events listing, and an Active Aging Week logo – all for free, all to help us help our communities get active. The 2010 theme is “Be Active Your Way.”
I have a professional interest in this, of course. As President of Agile Aging – Senior Wellness, I want everyone to get moving! This September week, with ACAA’s support and affiliation, is a terrific opportunity for everyone, on a number of levels. For my own network, which is senior centers, retirement communities, Assisted Living corporations, fitness instructors, physical and occupational therapists, caregivers, and everyone of a certain age, it is a chance to get focused to engage, educate, and move toward a more active, and more varied, lifestyle.
While our main objective is health and wellness, there’s a good PR angle here, too. Some organizations may feel like they’re already doing enough within their regular programs, but others can share my perspective that this is a great chance to stand out, shine, and even SHOUT OUT – and be seen as a leader for health and wellness in their own neck of the woods.
While you may be doing a lot of great things with your own community, my suggestion is to open your doors, and do something to engage the wider community – your neighbors, families, professionals, and caregivers.
It doesn’t need to take money. It just takes a wee bit of initiative, inspiration, and creativity. Which we had plenty of, expressed in our brainstorming sessions.
Some of our ideas are pretty rockin’, I think. Some, you may have already thought of yourself. Here’s just some of our ideas.
Fall Prevention Programs. This week is the first week of fall, and what a good time to focus on fall prevention programs. You could even have Fall Prevention Day on the first day of fall. I’m doing some workshops for RCFEs that week I’m calling, “Prevent Falls for Active Aging”, which will be a combination of educational seminar and unique, fun, and effective activities from my Agile Aging program. These are not only for the residents, but open to the public (with a strong PR campaign behind them, to get the word out) with snacks, too, of course. Everything goes better with snacks.
Stop And Smell the Roses Scavenger Hunt. We brainstormed about the idea of a scavenger hunt, with clues and a course to follow, that not only would be great fun, get people moving and exploring, but would also allow dignity for those who can’t range far and wide. Thanks, David, of Rose Villa in Portland, Oregon, for his contributions to the idea of slowing down and noticing nature around us. So, rather than a rush-rush kind of hunt, where the fastest who find the most win, perhaps another approach would be more appropriate. Engage the senses of smell, sight, touch, taste, balance, motion. Notice the bees in the lavender, the songbirds in the trees and on the fence, the motion of the water flowing in the fountain. Connecting ourselves with the bounties of nature for those with limited mobility can enhance all the senses of life, and give movement to our emotions as well as our bodies.
Walk Your Age – Host AARP’s 10 Week Walking Program. This is not new, or a secret, but another wonderful program you can affiliate with, and host. How about hosting the walk from your parking lot or front door? Within your community or staff you can probably find someone interested in being the Walk Leader. Gather, strap on your pedometers (a nice touch – you can even have them personalized with your own logo), and off you go. Offer refreshments (water, healthy snacks) upon their return.
Where Did I Put My Glasses? This program, not obviously a movement program, addresses the concern we all have when we start to forget little things – is this the start of Alzheimer’s? But I can see it as an activity program too, of learning to retrace our steps either physically or in our mind’s eye, practicing re-membering.
These are just a sampling of the ideas that came flowing from our brainstorming. Maybe you have some others to share. Please let us know!
For more great tips on movement for Agile Aging, visit my website at www.agileaging.org.
