One of the biggest challenges in dementia care is the unpredictable nature of the disease. The journey itself has a path difficult to predict and it is often accompanied with behaviors, expressions and needs that are hard to plan for. This results in a higher cost of care, difficulty in matching service with needs and an […]

“You matter because you are you and you matter to the last moment of your life. We will do all we can to help you, not only to die peacefully, but to live until you die”.  — Dame Cicely Saunders It is at the later stage of dementia such as Alzheimer’s that an individual is the […]

The goal of programming and life enrichment is to help residents live their highest quality of life – no matter their interests, background, life stories and abilities. For programming to support optimal wellness in residents, it needs to establish engagement opportunities that match realistic goals for each individual. Measuring outcomes of activities, whether they are […]

The National Wellness Institute says spiritual wellness is essential to quality of life and that it is better to live each day in a way that is consistent with our values and beliefs than to do otherwise and feel untrue to ourselves.  For people with dementia, helping to maintain a link or reconnect with their religion as part […]

Providing person centered care to individuals that have dementia is essential to their quality of life. A critical challenge in achieving this is understanding the perspective of the person with cognitive impairment. With a proper appreciation of that perspective, one can communicate better to achieve more precise assessments, better care and evaluation. It is also critical […]