Alzheimer’s, Part 2 with Kelley Smith, Amanda Kirilenko and Holly Carr
CarePartners Senior Living‘s Kelley Smith joins community relations directors Amanda Kirilenko (Vineyard Park Puyallup, Cottages at Edgewood) and Holly Carr (Cottages Lacey, Cottages University Place) for a three-part conversation about Alzheimer’s. This segment focuses on CarePartners’ cottages concept.
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*The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors.
And welcome back everyone to answer for elders radio and we have been blessed to have three of the best of the best and living. UNTILI Smith, who we all know, Amanda Kar Manko, and I’m still working on that last name it ally car and we’re celebrating Pierce County today. I seems like that we’re doing that with with our seniors, and we have so many of our seniors that are with us and certainly families that are wild listeners to the program. And so we talked a little bit about what a families asking. What are their questions? How are they you know? You know how are they asking, and different things like that. And you guys have a really specialized area of care that really, I think is fascinating, and you have a concept called the cottages. Amanda and Holly, why don’t you kind of pick up the torch and talk a little bit about the cottages concept? Sure, it’s IT’S A it’s a philosophy and a format that we’re really proud of. It is a for cottages on the campus. In the center of that campus is a courtyard and throughout the parameter is all secured with the top thing that everyone nice and face, but allows them to have a flexibility to roam and have some freedom and experience a little independence throughout. They can travel between cottages. It’s actually Sudana’s actually need to mimic a small neighborhood and it is in a size and a space that’s comfortable for them, that works for wherever they are currently, what stage or faith they might mean. And it’s a private home. It’s like you’re at home. You’re not in this big building where it’s overwhelming and, you know, like an institutional feeling feel. It’s place where you can be in a scenario where you’re comfortable and your you know that your loved one is and you’ve been with a smaller group of people. How many people are in one cottage us? We can hold up to twenty residents in each cottage, or not very many. It’s no help. And you know, as Amanda was saying, they there are phone cottages on the campus and one of those is strictly administration, because care partners has done a lot of research and you know, the phone’s ringing, packages being dropped off, deliveries being made. That can be so overwhelming to somebody who is living with dementia. So they’ve really taken into account a lot of research when developing these community I love I love that and having a separate courtyard area. You know, they can walk outside, they can and you’re in a safe environment. I know so many families that are taking care of seeing your loved ones and they have to you know, mult the doors and because there’s a man if we put alarms on the doors. Yeah, yeah, and even hearing the alarms, that to be just totally jarring for residence. So how do you find? I guess if somebody is is been and, let’s say another type of the community and they come and live in the cottage with this new concept. How sotually the embracing this? Everyone experiences that differently depending on their past. We have a lot of a lot of positive experiences within the cottage. It’s the the layout of the rooms is a circle there. Everything’s very purpose driven. It’s that purpose behind it, if very intentional, right down to the colors of the wall paint being very calming and differentiating between doors and walls, to helping them create pathways of just walking in a circle, not feeling lost for the reaching a dead end. Everybody rests around them and embraces them. It’s not overwhelming, as all you mentioned. There’s a maximum of twenty residents. So it’s just enough for them to feel like they found a little family. And sometimes a blessing of the disease is they don’t know, they don’t know that person and they can be, you know, allowed to express that vulnerability and in bonding with other people. You know, that still taking place. It’s actually very rewarding and citzilling to get to witness and each kindage of their own living room also, which is nice. So we have our own common areas that we get to sit in and enjoy and it’s just really, really nice and they can actually sit in and, you know, visit or you know, and and obviously now when do they have separate apartments? So they have shared apartments. How does that usually work? But we have both private and shared sweet hay. They can choose which they prefer. Sometimes, you know, it’s better to have a roommate. I absolutely agree with you. Yeah, that’s there. In a situation with Alzheimer’s Dementia, I would five hundred percent agree. Sometimes it’s hard for the kids to wrap their you know Fort Buildings to get there in that space and see the value that that holes. But it’s heart to explain to them the research that’s been done, that it is there and we view it as a positive. It’s very comforting it. They’re lonely in their mind in the last thing we want them to do is be lonely in reality here and sometimes just rolling over in the night and being a person laying there is it’s comforting. Not Right. Right, and I went and him too that you know, just having that socialization is important because it’s not so scary. You’re not in a you know, waking up and you know, room like after falling asleep, taking a nap, because they probably take several laps to day. You have something I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed. I did some research here a few years ago and we actually did this with autistic children. If ever notice autistic children, when you get them in a group with other children who don’t have autism, these children feel very isolated and very lonely in a group with other autistic children and magic happens. NAP suddenly they can play together. Not all of them, but I’m just saying as a group you see something very different. happened. It’s the same thing with dementia. You get a dementia residence in with a bunch of other residents who don’t have dementia and they’re there. Their differences stand out like a sort of thumb and they know it. And maybe you get them in with a group of other people that are also suffering from different forms of dementia and once again, magic happens. M conversations happened, you see connections happened and it’s like the guard is broken down and the can and the filters are off and so they say the most outrageous horrible at the other it’s the most beautiful thing ever. Really love it. Never forgive you. And my mom was in a memory care situation and some of the things that would come out of her mouth, and she’d say that other resonans and they just like whatever, and I would just like, Oh my God, I can’t believe mom music. But that’s the thing about that’s a different world that they’re in and we understanding that. You know, those things happen. I you know, I always tell the Chinese restaurant story of when we took my mother out the Chinese food. My mother was a Aviad follower of family post right member Emiley Post about the book of etiquette manners and a man walked in with a baseball cap on and she never in her adult life, you know, when she was a hundred percent with it, would have never ever, you know, said anything right. But because the filters were done, she yelled out to him, young man, didn’t your mother ever teach you any manners? You take off your hat, and he was very nice to took his hat off and I was I wanted to crawl into the table and I just walked over and I said, I’m really, really sorry. I said my mom has the Mensha and he laughed in because, because the kind of figures that it was very gracious. I bought him, you know, I said, let let me, you know, buy your drink for you and because no, no, no, no, you’re fine. But the thing that was interesting is that that’s the thing the world, when you’re talking about that, that’s what their world is. There’s not that I’m not going to say anything anymore. They say it and they come out with it and this is an environment where being themselves is accepted and this is what’s going on and I think a lot of us it’s family members, you know, can cringe. Ever, have had moments like that. My Chinese restaurant story with my mother right the same kind of scenario. We as family members, need to understand that this is going to be a better way for them to be more authentic of really are and certainly be in an environment. And so, you know, looking at where care partners is providing that opportunity. They can walk out in the courtyard, they can do little things like that in the sunshine, they can sit in the sunshine, they can do whatever they want. I’m definitely wanted to talk about activities and what that means to someone with the Menchion, but I want to talk a little bit of next segment. But I want to talk right now and last few minutes in this segment as far as there are care treatments or method of stops that are specially trained for. So with all timers. Aman, do you mentioned a little bit about music earlier. Tell us a little bit about what are some of the common practice has when someone is in a community like the cottages? Sure. Well, also, in addition to just having, you know, music, guests and big things, we also think the little things are important to hand, just like for giving them that sense of purpose and fulfillment in their life. A lot of things that are comforting to one person may not be to the next. Some ladies love folding laundry. We have somebody that will put away the laundry for the whole cottage because that’s what she did. She loves it. If you dare try to stop her, it would just be devastating. Sure, so those things to we even make her my house. They do. She’s so gracious about it too so, but that’s what she enjoys doing and it’s getting to know everyone on an individual basis and seek what what makes them sick. Some guys we have, you know, a tray with some nuts and bolts and you know, and that’s the texture of that reminds them of their job that they used to do. We really tailored around each individual as much as possible. You know, from doing dishes. They’ve got kitchen scrubbies and things like that that they always had that make them feel like their self. Yes, yes, and you guys right now are running some move in specials. So, Holly, why don’t you tell us a little bit about those right now? Kelly, I’m going to pass that on your nothing like that. Throwing me under the bus or right now, if you deposit them and the month of March for Memory Care Communities, we will waive the deposit. Or assisted living, you get a month off and you get to pick them up. Well, the free, rich and and you’re going to soon be able to do live in person tours. I’m assuming actually we’re doing them now and if you get a hold of that, we’re doing them now in select communities and if you get a hold of us you could find out which so those communities that the governor has lifted those restrictions. I love it. And so how do we get in touch with you? We can, what’s your website? WWW care partners livingcom. And if you go to the admissions page you can see these beautiful people and their actual contact information directly. Well, and we’re excited to have you guys with us and certainly looking forward to our next segment. We’re going to talk about activities. Let’s talk about when someone has to mens our alzheimers. What are the activities that are offered? How do they you know? Why are they important? And certainly Kelly and holly and Amanda will be back right after this awesome thank you.
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Originally published March 21, 2021