practical living
A house by any other name
The Desert Rose is a
technologically advanced
house of the future for
people with dementia.
Clayton McDowell interviewed
by Megan Tran
A
team from the University of Wollongong (UOW) has
officially launched Australia’s first dementia-friendly,
net‑zero energy house, which aims to improve quality
of life for those with aged-related disabilities.
Taking its name from a flower that flourishes in challenging
environments, the Desert Rose house is constructed with smart
technology and design principles that adapt to occupants’
needs as they age.
The home is now complete and ready to compete in the Solar
Decathlon Middle East 2018.
Project manager Clayton McDowell said one of the strategies
that enable people to stay at home longer was the creation of
an environment where people could live their daily lives with the
assistance of technology.
McDowell said an example of the ways in which the house
design was adapted to its specific purpose was the layout –
for example, separating the ensuite bathroom from the master
bedroom with a sliding door, so the toilet bowl can be in full
view when an occupant wakes up.
“You have direct line of sight to the bathroom, and studies
have shown if you have direct line of sight to the toilet, you are
eight times more likely to use the bathroom,” McDowell said.
He added that while people usually associate dementia
with forgetfulness, it also affects other parts of the mind and
body, so items like digital tap fittings were installed, as there
is no resistance when turning the tap if the user has poor
hand strength.
The layout is also intended to capture a moment in time which
can help to jog a person’s memory, McDowell said. While the
technology is very advanced, he added the fittings are designed
to look like they are from an earlier time.
“If their dementia transports them back to the 1950s, the tap
handles will take them back to that time, so they know it’s where
22 agedcareinsite.com.au
they wash their hands or have a drink of water,” he said.
Users are encouraged to maintain their daily activities to
remain self-sufficient in their homes for longer; however,
McDowell said that for most people there will be a stage where
higher care is needed, and the house’s construction caters for
this; for example, having a door wide enough to fit a hospital bed.
He said that working in the design studio where they used
virtual reality headsets to walk through the house allowed them
to get a sense of how a client might feel about the layout, and if it
didn’t work, the plan was rev ised.
It is estimated that dementia rates in Australia will double by
2050, and internationally it affects almost 50 million people.
The team behind the project, comprising students and staff
from the University of Wollongong Australia-Dubai and TAFE
NSW, based the concepts around UOW professor Richard
Fleming’s 10 design principles.
Aged Care Insite spoke with McDowell to find out more about
the innovative Desert Rose house.
ACI: How would this house improve the quality of life for
those with dementia and disabilities?
CM: There are several things. With dementia, everyone’s journey
is unique, so what we’ve tried to do with this house is to make
it as adaptable as possible, so that depending on the individual
person’s journey with dementia, we try to include things that can
assist them on that journey.
For example, there are no hallways. It’s very easy to navigate,
and we try to make it so that they can see items that are going to
jog their memory: “Maybe I’ll have a drink of water,” or “Maybe I’ll
have some tea,” or “Maybe I’ll take some time to relax.”
Some of the things we’ve put in the house are very advanced
technology, but we make it look like it comes from a generation
prior – even down to our induction cooktop. It’s a very efficient
cooktop in the kitchen, but it still has knobs. It’s hard to find
induction cooktops these days that aren’t touch pad activated.
So having little things like knobs, so that it’s still recognisable as a
place to cook your food, is important.
How would this enable people to stay at home longer and out
of the aged care system?
In my opinion, a lot of people get taken to a nursing home
arrangement just because their home becomes a bit of a health