Group activities improve mental functioning in dementia patients

Activities directors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professinals,

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Barchester.com

Partaking in group mental activities to stimulate thought, conversation and memory improves the cognitive functioning of people with mild or moderate dementia, according to researchers.

A recent study claims that cognitive stimulation of patients through structured activities in a group setting one or more times a week for at least a month can improve the symptoms of dementia.

The sessions can include a discussion of current events, a show-and-tell, or drawing, among other activities.

According to Robert Winningham, professor at the University of Western Oregon, the study shows that patients in a care home facility could have better dementia outcomes if workers make use of interaction possibilities.

"This is showing the people who work in memory care communities and nursing homes and assisted living facilities that they can improve cognitive function, and they need to be providing these kinds of interventions," he told Reuters.

The study contributes to the growing body of research that suggests keeping the brain active can help combat dementia.

Make your next event a success

Activities directors, other health care professionals, others who order supplies for their organizations, and caregiver groups needing supplies for large group get togethers, here is some information that will be most helpful.

As activity directors and others are responsible for planning events, you want to get supplies that are cost effective and come to you quickly. You also need supplies that are unique. Atlanta Hotel Supply has a wide variety of items that you will probably need. Ordering online is most convenient because you can do it from the comfort of your desk or mobile phone. Hotel Supplies Online  is very user friendly and has an almost unlimited array of things you will need for your next large event.

If you work for a nursing home or an assisted living facility, you can share these Hotel Bar Supplies with persons responsible for all your needs because you will find these supplies to be of high quality and you can not get things you may not be able to find from a typical vendor.

We had an Easter party the other day. We were able to get everything we needed. The party was a huge success. I am sure our next big event will be great as well.

Best ever Easter gifts for those with dementia

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professinals,

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Choosing the right present for someone with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia is certain to give him/her joyful times independently or with a loved one. Here are some tips on how to pick a perfect gift.


Over 5.4 million Americans are living with dementia. Is one of them someone you know or work with? Get him/her or anyone with Alzheimer's disease an Easter gift that will keep on giving long after the holiday is gone.


Of course, person appropriate offerings are the best. This means matching a gift to a person’s interests and abilities, However, there are some presents that will make them smile no matter what.


One such gift is a book by Susan Berg called Adorable Photographs of Our Baby -- Meaningful, Mind-Stimulating Activities and More for the Memory Challenged, Their Loved Ones and Involved Professionals, This book features baby photographs that seniors with dementia love. This book shares a plethora of ideas and resources for you.
There is an activity related to hats that is most appropriate around Easter time.


If the person is a hat lover, buying him/her a new bonnet for Easter is an extraordinary idea. It will bring back fond memories of past Easters. Perhaps you can dig out some old Easter bonnets to try on as well as talk about, together, as Susan Berg suggests in her book. You could also have fun going through an old chest of clothes,

Are you reading Alzheimer's Caregivers Guide Magazine

Activities directors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information


Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professinals,


Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire




Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Here is some information related to an activity for lower functioning residents for or around St. Patrick's Day or any other day in a past issue of,  "Alzheimer's Care Guide Magazine/Current Activities in Geriatric Care"

Koosh balls, springs, bendable toys, glitter wands, squishy stars or other shapes, large pony tale holders, tissue paper, emery boards, cotton, tin foil, stuffed animals, books, folders, small pillows, cymbals, bells, scratch and sniff stickers, magic markers, paper bags, paper plates, envelopes, rug samples, napkins, jar openers, ribbon, or greeting cards. If you think of more, your ideas add them in the comment section. 

Engineering Students Create Therapy Devices for Dementia Patients

Activities directors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition

This article may interest you. Perhaps you could partner with a school

By Steve Harmic, Penn State DuBois

DUBOIS – Thanks to a group of freshman engineering students at Penn State DuBois, some area dementia patients are finding comfort in spite of their illness. The students recently applied their engineering know-how to create devices that stimulate the minds of those suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia, and those devices are now being used daily at Christ the King Manor Nursing Home in DuBois.

The items, entirely designed and built by the engineering students, vary in the activities and stimuli that they provide for patients.  One of them is a soft blanket that has had LED lights and an MP3 player sewn into it, offering stimulus to the eyes, ears, and skin all at once.

Another device utilizes an air pump to create moving bubbles in a lighted, water-filled tube.  Yet another device is built as a platform with various objects attached, such as buttons and zippers that allow patients to utilize their fine-motor skills.  Then, there is a Plexiglas table which is lighted from below, that provides patients the opportunity to create pictures on the glass with sand. Overall, this stimulation to sight, hearing, and touch, brings a sense of clarity and sharpness to the minds of the residents that use them.

“It occupies their thinking and they become more alive; it wakes them up,” said Marsha Miles, the memory support supervisor at Christ the King Manor.  She explained that while the residents often do become alert during these exercises, they are also contented. She said, “These activities they created for the residents to do bring a calming effect to them.”

“This not only provided some great experience to the students, but also allowed them to participate in some great community outreach,” said Daudi Waryoba, the assistant professor of engineering who assigned the projects.  He explained, “Their big project for the fall semester was to come up with a design and develop a system to stimulate elderly patients with dementia. They could use any kind of material.  This gave them freedom to think about a project on their own, develop it using their classroom and lab lessons, and put it to good use in the community for people who need it.”

According to the students, all of Waryoba’s goals for the project were reached.

“We spent a lot of time researching what materials we could use,” said student Cody Wood of Marion Center, who was a member of the team that created the lighted bubble stimulation machine.  “It takes a lot of time and research before you even start anything.  Then, you put everything into practice.  This showed us a big part of that engineering process, so it was really helpful.”

Wood also enjoyed the gratification of doing something special for the residents at Christ the King.  He said, “I think it’s a great concept; it’s a good cause.  It makes you feel good as a person to help people,”

According to the professionals at Christ the King, the student projects certainly do help people.  Miles said, “I’m impressed with the students.  I believe they gave everything they had in these projects.  They worked so well, and thought outside the box.”

“It was especially meaningful to see these students connect with their hearts, as well as using their minds, talent and education,” said Michelle DiGilarmo, director of human resources at Christ the King Manor. “They learned about some of the challenges our residents face and developed concepts that were right on.  It was thrilling to be a part of such a worthwhile project where engineering students experienced, firsthand, how something they could design would impact a life.”

Activity Professionals Conference

Activities directors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition

Allyson Dedic

I have been sponsoring conferences for over 4 years now for Therapeutic Recreation (on land and at sea!) and we are now ready for 2013! The conference will be held May 1-4, 2013 in beautiful St. Augustine, FL at Holiday Isle Oceanfront Resort. 

We have some great sessions, many that are interactive and hands on. The brochure and descriptions of sessions are posted on-line! 

Also, sponsorships/vendor opportunities are now available… this is a great way for business to get exposure! Over the last 4 years I have learned about so many services I never knew were available until they were a part of our very successful events. 

If you are interested in attending, sponsoring, or being put on our e-mailing list for registration, please email me at trinmotion@gmail.com! 

Visit www.trinmotion.org and join our LinkedIn Group “Therapeutic Recreation In Motion”. You can also join our “Therapeutic Recreation in Motion” group on Facebook!

Someday you'll laugh about this week

Activities directors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professinals,

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire


Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be


Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Ever did something so incredibly stupid/awkward/embarrassing/illegal that you couldn't do anything but exclaim to whoever was near you that "oh, we'll laugh about this one day!" Well, today is your day....well...this whole week is actually.

This is a great week. It reminds us that it's really important to laugh at the silly and blockheaded things that we all do everyday. Case in point, it takes six days for people to violate 90 percent of their new year's resolutions. Now, we can sit and pout and whine about it all, or we could laugh and chuckle and guffaw over the whole thing!

Now how many times do we get to use guffaw in a sentence?

What things can you and your residents laugh about?