Tap into Music with Meaning

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers, read this from: Alzheimer's and Dementia Weekly
Bill Hemmer:

Whether it's the first dance at your wedding or the theme song of your high school years, music can trigger a flood of memories. Now, scientists mapping the brain say the two are linked in an area that is one of the least affected by neuroligcal disease.

So, is the next big breakthrough for Alzheimer's patients sitting on their iPods? Dr. Keith Siller is a neurologist at NYU Medical Center here in New York. Nice to see you, Doc, thanks for coming in.

Dr. Siller: Thank you.

Bill: I guess anyone who has driven in the car and flipped around the dial and found an 'oldies' station can relate to this. The idea of music sort of bringing in a flood of memories. Talk to us how doctors are now using this as they research different treatments and perhaps even a cure for Alzheimer's.

Dr. Siller: Well, I don't know if this is going to lead to a cure, but it is a concept that could be a novel therapy. The fact is, we have to understand that memory has many different components. We don't just learn by reading, we also learn by any sensory input that we get. Could be music, could be the smell of something. This is a very interesting study because it actually shows us what normal memory is like. The fact that we can tap into long-term memory, for example, is very exciting, through a stimulus that we normally didn't think about.

I think we can all relate to this. You smell a perfume or a song or something else that reminds you of something from the past. So it is a very clever technique which, if done properly, might actually help a patient with a memory disorder.
....read the whole article

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The Songs They Can’t Forget

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers, here is an article that will interest you from the
New York Times
By Sara Davidson
Tom was a wanderer. When his wife, Elsie, came to visit him at a care unit for patients with dementia, he would give her a perfunctory kiss, then wander off through the rooms and stare out the window. Elsie tried to walk with him and hold hands, but he would shake her off, leaving her heartsick.

A music therapist at the facility, Alicia Clair, was searching for ways to help couples like Elsie and Tom connect. Ms. Clair asked Elsie if she’d like to try dancing with Tom, then put on some music from the ’40s — Frank Sinatra singing “Time after Time.” Ms. Clair said recently, “I knew Tom was a World War II vet, and vets did a lot of ballroom dancing.”

As Sinatra began singing, Elsie opened her arms, beckoning. Tom stared a moment, then walked over and began leading her in the foxtrot. “They danced for thirty minutes!” Ms. Clair said. When they were finished, Elsie broke down and sobbed. “I haven’t been held by my husband in three years,” she told Ms. Clair. “Thank you for bringing him back.”

Ms. Clair, a professor of music therapy at the University of Kansas, tells this story to show how music can reach people with Alzheimer’s disease. Music has the power to bypass the mind and wash through us, triggering strong feelings and cueing the body to synchronize with its rhythm.

Researchers and clinicians are finding that when all other means of communication have shut down, people remember and respond to....read the whole article

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Happy Mother's Day

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers tomorrow is Mother's day and the start of National Nursing Home Week.

What do you have planned?

Here is a brief synopsis of what we are doing:
Celebrate NATIONAL NURSING HOME WEEK, May 10-15, at Hunt, 90 Lindall St.

This week is filled with excitement, music, fun and cheer, so JOIN US for ALL or for some of it

Sunday, May 10, for a special Mother’s Day Tea at 2:15pm.
The Resident Choral Group will perform followed by a light buffet

Monday, May 11, at 2:15pm
Emanuel’s Black and White Band performs

Tuesday, May 12 from 1-4pm relax with FREE chair massages courtesy of Muscular Therapy and play BINGO at 2:15pm before or after your massage

Wednesday, May 13, join us for a
MEMORIAL SERVICE at 4pm

Thursday, May 14, at 2:15 watch and dance with the Riverside Squares

Friday, May 15, at 2:15pm be entertained by the Cape Ann Seniorettes and others from
Miss Tina’s Dance Studio

For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here

For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here

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Plan to honor your nurses(part 2)

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers
As I said in the last post, I make a card for the residents to distribute to the nurses on staff. This, as you might expect, makes for good relationships between the residents and the staff. I like to foster positive relationships with as many groups of people as possible. Whenever there is an opportunity, I take advantage of it.

Before the card distribution, we have a nice discussion about the nurses’ jobs. I ask if the residents know all the things that the nurses do for them and others in the facility. Before the discussion is over, everyone is so thankful for all the nurses.

Above is an example of the card I made. It is pretty simple, but it gets the message across.
Have the higher functioning residents fold the cards or make their own cards.

For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here

For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here

For interesting dementia articles and activities, click here

Plan to honor your nurses

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers,
as many of you know, May 6 to May 12 is National Nurses Week. This is a time to honor your nurseas whether you work with or employ them.

We at Hunt Nursing and Rehabilitation Center honor our nurses not only this week but throughout the year.

I promised many of you a posting about why nurses should be honored

We at Hunt Nursing and Rehabilitation Center honor our nurses not only this week but throughout the year.

I promised many of you a posting about why nurses should be honored.

Nurses, Lifting Spirits, Touching Lives

You care. You tend the sick, you observe, record, assess, instruct. You listen. You supervise, plan schedules, assign duties. You watch. You’re quick in emergencies, compassionate with suffering, expert with complicated procedures. You respond. Your experience is more varied than we can list on this page, your presence more valuable than any job description can quantify. You’re a helper, a healer, a friend. And to us at Hunt, you are at the very heart of our commitment to resident -centered care.

Thank You!

For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here

For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here

For more interesting dementia articles and activities, click here

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers, a colleague od mine, Sharon K. Brothers, MSW, talks about music and dementia

A music therapist at the facility, Alicia Clair, was searching for ways to help couples like Elsie and Tom connect. Ms. Clair asked Elsie if she'd like to try dancing with Tom, then put on some music from the '40s - Frank Sinatra singing "Time after Time." Ms. Clair said recently, "I knew Tom was a World War II vet, and vets did a lot of ballroom dancing."

As Sinatra began singing, Elsie opened her arms, beckoning. Tom stared a moment, then walked over and began leading her in the foxtrot. "They danced for thirty minutes!" Ms. Clair said. When they were finished, Elsie broke down and sobbed. "I haven't been held by my husband in three years," she told Ms. Clair. "Thank you for bringing him back."

It's a lovely story, and it illustrates the power of music in the lives of the person with memory loss.

I remember the first time I heard one of our caregivers explain how she got a client to bathe. This client resisted everyone's effort to help him bathe, and could quickly become angry and aggressive if pushed. We'd all tried every approach we knew, and then Wanda stepped up.

An hour later, the client was bathed, relaxed and smiling. We had to know: how did she do it?

Here's what she said.....read the whole post

For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here

For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here

For more interesting dementia articles and activities, click here

Cince de Mayo for those with dementia(part 2)

Activities directors, other healthcare professionals and caregivers
I like to make a card to distribute to the group involved with this activity. Below is a sample of a simple card I created. I actually distribute it to all the residents in our particular nursing home.
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As you can see we are featuring ice cream as the sweet treat. You can feature anything you want. You can get ideas from the cookbook below


It just so happens that the folks I serve, love ice cream. Therefore at just about every event we feature ice cream. I like it because it is easy. It can be bought in sugar free varieties and, if necessary, it can be tickened to meet almost every dietary need

Just another note about the cards I created for this holiday. We have several higher functioning residents who need jobs and folding these cards is a great task for them. You create and copy and they fold. This folding task also works as a great diversionary tactic for a mildly agitated person with dementia who will have success with this project.
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You can make cards similar to this for any holiday. If folding in quarters is too much, then make a card that is just folded in half. This requires that you are able to print on both sides of the paper

More great fun tomorrow. See you then
Remember, keep it simple

For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here

For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here

For more interesting dementia articles and activities, click here