Dementia Friendly Home
Creating a Dementia Friendly Home℠
In concert with our goal to help individuals with memory impairment live the highest quality of life and to age in place, we have created a comprehensive service called the Dementia Friendly Home℠. The purpose of this service is to create a living environment that is conducive to someone with a progressive brain disease. Many environments, whether in the family home or in an assisted/skilled setting, have features that undoubtedly cause increased agitation for someone who may be struggling to communicate or make sense of the world around them. The more confusion and/or distress the individual with impairment experiences, the more “behavioral expressions” will be exhibited; this, in turn, causes stress for family and/or paid caregivers and the relationship and well being of all concerned can suffer greatly. Creating a “dementia friendly home” will pave the way for a safe, appropriately stimulating, and easy-to-navigate home environment where the individual with dementia can feel more relaxed, peaceful, and at home with themselves.
How the Process Works
The Dementia Friendly Home℠ is a detailed, customized service performed by a Certified Dementia Practitioner. The service, accompanied by an evaluation, will assist the family by providing solutions to common causes of behavioral expressions.
The first step in creating a Dementia Friendly Home℠ is for us to meet with family members, caregivers, and the individual with impairment – in the family home. A thorough assessment is performed, including discussions and interviews with all care providers as well as observation and conversation with the individual with impairment. Observing how the Individual dwells and functions in their own living environment is essential ~ as is our own objective “walk-through” of the home. Once the initial intake is complete, we will soon after provide Observations and Recommendations tailored specifically toward this particular Individual in this particular living environment.