Oct. 2, 2019—Staff caring for residents of Chandler Hall’s Hicks Memory Support Residence are focused on meeting the unique needs of each person with dignity and respect. But responsibility for providing person-centered care extends far beyond Chandler Hall’s secure, memory support apartments.
That’s why 16 staff members from throughout the Chandler Hall community attended a Sept. 27 “Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Seminar” taught by Danielle Micale, a nationally certified Alzheimer’s disease and dementia trainer. Micale, the director of a local Department of Aging in New Jersey, is a licensed nursing home administrator and a past recipient of the Circle of Honor Advocacy Award from the Greater New Jersey Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.
“Danielle was a wonderful guest speaker. Her knowledge and presentation were quite extraordinary,” said Margaret Lutz, the Registered Nurse Assessment Coordinator for Chandler Hall’s Friends Nursing Home. “It is quite refreshing to see someone so passionate about her research and career. It opened my eyes as to how far our health system is behind in dementia and Alzheimer’s care.”
The 16 Chandler Hall staff who attended Micale’s seminar will be certified to train their own staff to provide sensitive approaches for assisting residents who have dementia with the activities of daily living. Along with fundamental education on dementia and dementia care, staff who attended the seminar also learned enhanced communication techniques and how to foster sensitivity and respect for residents with dementia.
“What we take for granted is more difficult for those diagnosed with dementia,” said Maddy Dorbor, Hicks Resident Care Coordinator. “I learned that visual cues are just as important as verbal and auditory cues.”
“I learned about the different types of dementia and how to work with each of those individual types, including frontal lobe dementia, Parkinson’s and vascular dementia,” said Justin Kulp, the administrator in training for Chandler Hall’s Friends Nursing Home. “Knowing the differences about where the brain is effected leads to specialized and individualized care.”
“The valuable information we learned will help staff to think outside the box when working with each individual and provide better understanding of each resident,” said Emily Vassoler, administrator of Friends Nursing Home. “Our plans are to train all staff in all departments.”
It’s estimated that 14% of people 71 and older in the United States have dementia. And as the size and proportion of the U.S. population age 70 and older continues to increase, the number of Americans with Alzheimer’s and other dementias will grow rapidly.
Memory Care at Chandler Hall
Chandler Hall’s Hicks Memory Support Residence provides a safe and secured environment while making residents feel right at home in spacious apartments.
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