activities and dignity
It was good to see the report this morning about NICE promoting the importance of activities for the mental health of those living in care settings. Just one plea lets make those activities dignified and not assume that everyone likes the same things and will be stimulated by the same activities. NAPA has long expressed the opinion that we need to make activities person centred and appropriate for every individual, otherwise we risk the danger of just getting swept along in .the provision of activities without thinking about the end result. The wrong activity can be as dangerous as no activity at all.
Could not agree more Liz - my mother, when recovering from a stroke, was given age inappropriate activities - she was given pictures with childhood toys on - this caused barriers to her recovery - she used to say i am not a child - it affected her confidence and self esteem, no thought was given to her dignity. It would have been far better to give her pictures that related to her adult life. It would certainly have helped her speech and recall if someone had taken the time to find out about her lifestyle and interests, activities could have been devised more appropriate to her needs. Her recovery would have been far speedier!!!
As Liz writes: '... otherwise we risk the danger of just getting swept along in the provision of activities without thinking about the end result'.
There is always a danger of becoming so immersed in 'routine' that 'the actual point of all' gets lost somewhere - and I'm guessing that the more 'time-challenged' staff are, the more that is likely to happen. But, as Jan says, it is much better to get it right !
One of the things I suggest in my trainings is that when it comes to the need for the use of " communication cards" for precisely as jan tells us with her mother's experience and the sense of being demeaned or treated like a child, is that images where possible can be chosen by the individual and minimised to an appropriate size, worn as a key fob if acceptable. This is discreet and dignified and person centred and the relatives can be involved in the making of these too if neccessary. have a good dignity action day . amanda waring