practical living
energises the staff as well. It’s all inclusive and everybody is
welcome. All the residents are invited and there’s approximately
around six staff members at any given time. There’s volunteers,
so if family members are visiting at the time, they’re encouraged
to participate. And we even have residents coming from other
units. The reputation has really got around and so it’s helping
people everywhere really feel energised and engaged in what’s
going on.
the initiative and it’s really quite interesting to note that once we
start talking about what’s going on at other sites, there’s this real
competitiveness amongst the personal trainers to go one better
and one bigger, and we’ve already had somebody that’s just
taken that up this week. And it was an amazing success. And you
know, there were photos, just showing the pure engagement and
enjoyment that was happening there.
Do you have any final words about this new program?
How can providers support those with dementia to
remain active?
It’s quite right that people with dementia can have challenges
in remaining active. It’s usually due to the symptoms that are
associated with the disease, so you’ve got things like apathy and
anxiety, disorientation. All those things that can get in the way of
them having regular exercise, and so while we have onsite gyms
for everyone to enjoy, the symptoms of dementia can cause a
problem there.
It is about personalising and tailoring problems to their needs
at the time. And so if they can remain in an environment where
they’re familiar and relaxed then that’s really the key to getting the
best response out of them.
What plans do you have to roll this out into all your
residential homes?
Well, we really have some great plans to do so. At the moment,
we’ve actually got five out of our eight sites that have taken up
I just think that we can’t overlook the importance of exercise for
people with dementia. And we can help them to maintain their
mobility, their balance and their core strength, and it’s preventing
falls, it’s preventing hospital admissions and presenting at
emergency where it’s, again, an unfamiliar environment. And so if
they can maintain that mobility, they maintain their independence:
and independence for everybody is paramount but for people
with dementia, it’s just crucial.
It sounds like a great program all round for people, residents,
staff as well. And also, their whole wellbeing.
It totally is. Our wellbeing program is not just about exercise and
I think that’s the really important factor here. Everybody walks
away with a smile on their face and what’s really being quite
notable is, people with dementia have memory loss but they
enjoy these sessions so much that long after the class is finished,
they’ve still got these beautiful, positive emotions happening,
and that’s amazing. ■
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