Residents enjoy singing beautiful Japanese songs with Julia!
June 3, 2010
June 2, 2010
Resident Portrait Series
This photo was taken one Saturday afternoon of Ms. Mitsue Suzuki and her daughter's dog, Misha.
May 31, 2010
Eden Alternative Tip of the Week: The Origins of Memorial Day
Remembrances are an important part of our lives. Many homes have remembrance or Memorial Gardens to honor those that are and have lived in the home. It is so important that we have a national holiday to honor those who have died in the service of this county and we call it Memorial Day. Do you know the origins of this annual holiday?
Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day. It was a remembrance to those who died during the Civil War. It is difficult to pinpoint exactly which community spurred the idea of Memorial Day, but the practice had become commonplace enough that General John Logan, from the General Army of the Republic, gave the original
In 1971, Memorial Day was moved from May 30th each year to the last Monday of May. That created a three-day holiday weekend which some feels has diminished the significance of the holiday itself.
In 1915, a woman named Moina Michaels conceived the idea to wear red poppies on Memorial Day. She would wear a poppy and then sold them to others to raise money to benefit servicemen in need. The VFW adopted the practice in 1922.
This Memorial Day, take a moment to remember those who have died in the service of this country and share stories with the Elders about what the holiday means to them. In December 2000 a resolution was passed called the National Moment of Remembrance. It states that at 3:00pm local time on Memorial Day, all Americans should "voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to taps."
Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day. It was a remembrance to those who died during the Civil War. It is difficult to pinpoint exactly which community spurred the idea of Memorial Day, but the practice had become commonplace enough that General John Logan, from the General Army of the Republic, gave the original
In 1971, Memorial Day was moved from May 30th each year to the last Monday of May. That created a three-day holiday weekend which some feels has diminished the significance of the holiday itself.
In 1915, a woman named Moina Michaels conceived the idea to wear red poppies on Memorial Day. She would wear a poppy and then sold them to others to raise money to benefit servicemen in need. The VFW adopted the practice in 1922.
This Memorial Day, take a moment to remember those who have died in the service of this country and share stories with the Elders about what the holiday means to them. In December 2000 a resolution was passed called the National Moment of Remembrance. It states that at 3:00pm local time on Memorial Day, all Americans should "voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to taps."
May 27, 2010
Wii Have Fun
Residents have begun competing with each other and our volunteers in Wii sports and games. Peter is shown here shooting pool.
May 26, 2010
Resident Portrait Series
I've been thinking about doing a series of resident portraits snapped while they're doing meaningful, fulfilling activities that bring them joy. I took this one this afternoon while he was drawing and enjoying some live music. Hope to have more to share soon!Ukulele Lessons & Sing Along
This afternoon residents enjoyed playing the ukulele and singing along with Auntie Penny in the nice, cool breeze under the umbrellas of Hale Makua Wailuku.
May 24, 2010
Eden Alternative Tip of the Week
Principle Three: Loving companionship is the antidote to loneliness. Elders deserve easy access to human and animal companionship.
Principles Three, Four, and Five are called the "antidote" principles, because each one provides an antidote to one of the Three Plagues of institutionalized Elders. These antidotes are not readily available in the traditional institutional model, and require a transformative process such as the Eden Alternative to be successful.
"Loving companionship" sounds pretty warm and fuzzy, but there are some very practical ramifications of this principle that guide operations in Eden Alternative homes. From a personal standpoint, the implication is that staff will form true relationships with the Elders in their care. This means knowing more about each Elder than his or her diagnoses and functional status. Personal preferences, life history, relationships, interests, spirituality, values--all are important in providing an optimal care environment.
From an operational standpoint, Principle Three suggests that the best care is provided by care partners who know the Elders well and can provide close and continuous contact. This means that agency staff and employees who rotate assignments cannot provide the optimum care. In an ideal Eden Alternative environment, there are no agency staff and care partners are permanently assigned.
This can meet with resistance among employees who wish to have a break from caring for particularly challenging Elders or their families. However, much of this "difficulty" stems from the lack of relationship a rotation system causes, which is seen by Elders and families as a lack of commitment to the person. By getting to know Elders and families, understanding each others point of view, and being "in it for the long haul", most homes report that relationships actually improve and complaints diminish.
Permanent assignments aren't just for nursing. How about medical, therapy employees, even housekeeping or building services? Regular assignments create community and a deeper knowing of the needs of the Elders and care partners in each neighborhood. Through our own elimination of agency staff and a move to permanent assignments, St. John's has eliminated their $3.5 million agency budget of 2002, and is now agency free for more than 6 years. Full-time employee turnover has decreased from over 30% a decade ago to only 8.5% last year, with a nursing turnover of only 13%. This has huge implications for quality of care.
Finally, the formation of close relationships also greatly improves the care of people who live with dementia, particularly those who have difficulty communicating their needs, or are frequently distressed. The deep knowing that comes from having regular care partners helps them to be understood and have their needs anticipated, not just medicated.
Principles Three, Four, and Five are called the "antidote" principles, because each one provides an antidote to one of the Three Plagues of institutionalized Elders. These antidotes are not readily available in the traditional institutional model, and require a transformative process such as the Eden Alternative to be successful.
"Loving companionship" sounds pretty warm and fuzzy, but there are some very practical ramifications of this principle that guide operations in Eden Alternative homes. From a personal standpoint, the implication is that staff will form true relationships with the Elders in their care. This means knowing more about each Elder than his or her diagnoses and functional status. Personal preferences, life history, relationships, interests, spirituality, values--all are important in providing an optimal care environment.
From an operational standpoint, Principle Three suggests that the best care is provided by care partners who know the Elders well and can provide close and continuous contact. This means that agency staff and employees who rotate assignments cannot provide the optimum care. In an ideal Eden Alternative environment, there are no agency staff and care partners are permanently assigned.
This can meet with resistance among employees who wish to have a break from caring for particularly challenging Elders or their families. However, much of this "difficulty" stems from the lack of relationship a rotation system causes, which is seen by Elders and families as a lack of commitment to the person. By getting to know Elders and families, understanding each others point of view, and being "in it for the long haul", most homes report that relationships actually improve and complaints diminish.
Permanent assignments aren't just for nursing. How about medical, therapy employees, even housekeeping or building services? Regular assignments create community and a deeper knowing of the needs of the Elders and care partners in each neighborhood. Through our own elimination of agency staff and a move to permanent assignments, St. John's has eliminated their $3.5 million agency budget of 2002, and is now agency free for more than 6 years. Full-time employee turnover has decreased from over 30% a decade ago to only 8.5% last year, with a nursing turnover of only 13%. This has huge implications for quality of care.
Finally, the formation of close relationships also greatly improves the care of people who live with dementia, particularly those who have difficulty communicating their needs, or are frequently distressed. The deep knowing that comes from having regular care partners helps them to be understood and have their needs anticipated, not just medicated.
From Dr. Al Power, Eden Mentor and Educator
St. John's Home, Rochester, NY
St. John's Home, Rochester, NY
May 20, 2010
Going Holo Holo for a Picnic
On Tuesday Wailuku residents drove out to Lahaina to enjoy the sun and surf, and to have a lovely picnic at the beach.
Residents enjoyed beautiful weather at Launiupoko beach in Lahaina (in red Peter Kaina Jr, to the left Emilio Jocson, Boris Garcia, Chico Cruz, Alan Camara, Myra Yanagihara).
Boris Garcia looks on as Chico Cruz and (act asst) Susie Lising work hard at the grill.
Myra, Peter, and Emilio enjoy a round of cards as they wait for their lunch.
Residents enjoyed beautiful weather at Launiupoko beach in Lahaina (in red Peter Kaina Jr, to the left Emilio Jocson, Boris Garcia, Chico Cruz, Alan Camara, Myra Yanagihara).
Boris Garcia looks on as Chico Cruz and (act asst) Susie Lising work hard at the grill.
Myra, Peter, and Emilio enjoy a round of cards as they wait for their lunch.Residents Reign Over May Day Program
Residents Ali and Bruno preside over this year's Hale Makua Kahului May Day program as Queen and King.
Resident Wally dances with staff.Minute to Win It Competition
Teams made up of residents and staff have a blast competing against each other in the Minute to Win It games during National Nursing Home Week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)