Pioneer Ridge Long Term Care Home is adopting a new approach to dementia care.
The home has brought on consultants from Meaningful Care Matter to help deliver the Butterfly Approach.
The new method focuses on patient-centred care instead of a traditional task-oriented model.
More specifically, emotion-focused care, and supporting the quality of life for each person living with dementia in the home.
According to Meaningful Care Matters the model has shown that it benefits people living with dementia by reducing their anxiety, distress, and incidents of falls while providing improvement in their overall well-being.
Their research also indicated that staff also benefit from the change.
“In the data we have collected, staff satisfaction goes up, staff retention goes up, staff sickness decreases,” said the Nurse Consultant for Meaningful Care Matters, Mary Kneale.
Pioneer Ridge has been looking for a new model of care since 2007.
“The way it is right now, it’s always deadlines and tasks, and everyone has got to be up and dressed and in the dining room at a certain time, and I can’t imagine if someone came to me and said okay guess what it’s time for you to get up and eat breakfast now,” explained Behavioural Support and Butterfly lead at Pioneer Ridge, Judy Walters.
“It’s about the routines and honouring the life story of each individual and what they want. We can be more creative as long as everything is care planned,” she added. “Person-centred care is what it’s all about and this is where we are going, and this is going to be a real home for our residents.”
The change is already underway with staff undergoing their first training session on Wednesday.
The new approach is operating out of Home Area 1 which is the home’s dementia area.
The rollout of the new approach will take place over the next year.
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