Making Life More Comfortable for Individuals with Dementia

Tudor Manor is attempting to make their residents feel a little bit more at home.

The supportive living facility houses 152 residents, 26 of whom live in their dementia care unit.

In association with The Brenda Strafford Foundation, they've begun the Home Sweet Home project, an initiative to decorate their dementia care unit with objects that make the area feel more home-like.

Brenda Carroll, Administrator for Tudor Manor, says dementia patients can struggle with change. Creating a dementia-friendly atmosphere can provide drastic benefits for the residents.

"(We're) trying to keep things that make the resident and the family members feel like when they come into the facility, the room, the common spaces, feel like a home. As opposed to being in an institution, it gives a level of comfort and stability," she said.

Carroll says that comfort can help alleviate difficult behavior, and create connections between the residents and staff.

The Home Sweet Home project is hoping that members of the public will provide donations to assist in making the space more comfortable for the residents.

"We really are looking for donations of objects, things like art or things that we can use to make our facility feel like a home," Carroll said.

They are also looking for volunteers to assist with things like painting murals or gardening to help spruce up the common areas.

Carroll uses the term "dementia friendly" to describe what they are trying to build at Tudor Manor.

"We know seniors and folks that might eventually end up in facility care would love to stay at home in their home environment for as long as possible," she said. "Making that transition to facility-care more home-like is the connection with Home Sweet Home."

Written by Ben Burnett for Okotoks Online 
(Published: Monday, 08 July 2019)