Upcoming Workshop for Caregivers

December 11, 2012

Jeannie Sharp-Kehl, Mental Health Clinician, A/OA Three Bridges Community Health Centre and Heather Wright, Manager, ADC & AOA Three Bridges Community Health Centre, VCH will be providing information for caregivers on dealing with challenging behaviors of a family member with dementia; learning strategies based on physical, environmental, task-related and communication aspects; and understanding behaviors resulting from more complex dementias (Lewy Body, Parkinson’s, etc.)  Date:   Tuesday December 11, 2012   Time:    10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (followed by light  refreshments) Where: Trout Lake Community Centre, LakewoodRoom               3350 Victoria Drive (at 15th Avenue)Vancouver

*Please pre-register:

Vancouver Resource Centre
604-675-5150 or info.vancouver@alzheimerbc.org

Caregiver Initiative

Part of our mandate is to provide support to caregivers and we do this through a variety of supports, including one-to-one counselling and referrals to various resources in the community, such as the caregiver education series and support groups facilitated by Vancouver Coastal Health and the Alzheimer Society. Last fall we distributed a Survey of Caregiver Needs to the caregivers of our participants from both centres in order to learn more about our caregivers and to determine how we could best support them. As a result of the feedback we received, we identified three goals for the 2012-2013 year:

• Develop an internet resource for clients and caregivers that will provide information about our centres, about topics related to adult day services and caregiving and links to community resources.
• Develop a caregiver resource manual containing information about supports and services in the community, as well as social or activity programs that can be attended by caregivers and care recipients.
• Organize one information session and one social event at each site that can be attended by the caregivers of our clients. 

Thanks to the efforts of our staff and practicum students, the first two goals of our caregiver initiative have been met. Currently, we are working on our third goal to organize one information session and one social event which will take place between January and April of 2013. To this end, we are in the process of contacting all of our caregivers to obtain feedback about their ideas for what to discuss at these events. 

We will keep you updated on our progress and encourage you to think of potential topics for discussion at these events.  

November Calendar for Beulah Gardens ADC

November Calendar for South Vancouver ADC

October Calendar for Beulah ADC

Click on the calendars to see a larger version.

October Calendar for South ADC

Modified Exercise Program

Facilitators of exercise groups for frail seniors will understand that developing a routine that meets the needs of all participants can be challenging due to differences in ability levels, mobility, medical conditions, hearing and sight abilities and language. In order to address this diversity, both of our centres offer two, 45 minute exercise sessions each day, one for clients with a high level of mobility and another for clients with a medium level or mobility or other challenges that make exercise in the high mobility group difficult for them.

Balance Exercises

The content of both exercise groups is similar, however, the high mobility group is facilitated at a faster pace, includes more complicated movements and has a more extensive standing and balance component, whereas the medium mobility group includes more simple movements and limits the number of transitions between exercises. As a general rule, each session consists of a warm up, a cardiovascular component, strength training for the upper and lower body using weights, therabands or dyno balls, weight-bearing balance exercises and a cool down. 

Strength Training Exercises

Recently, the staff at South Vancouver ADC introduced a modified exercise program for a small group of participants who were having difficulty participating in the medium mobility exercise group because they were unable to perform weight-bearing exercises. The content of this new program has been modified to enhance the specific abilities of these participants. In addition to the stretching and resistance exercises always included in the exercise programs, a component for manual dexterity using large and small balls and silly putty has been added. 

Exercises Using Silly Putty

Facilitating this program around a table encourages eye contact and interaction between participants and the small group setting enables the leader to spend more time with each client and to offer more specific instructions and hand under hand assistance, when needed. The participants are enjoying the small group setting and are encouraged by their ability to participate in each of the exercises; as a result,  staff have noted an increase in participants' levels of engagement. If you are looking for ideas on how to enhance your exercise programs with a similar group, we would be happy to share more details about our program with you. 

For more information on seniors exercise, visit the website for the Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging (CCAA). The CCAA is involved in research, exercise program development and exercise leader training for facilitators of exercise programs for seniors of all functional levels, including frail seniors in long term care facilities and community care and active, independent seniors. Recently, CCAA has also established new Physical Activity Guidelines for Seniors. 

September Calendar for South

September Calendar for Beulah

Upcoming Workshops by Vancouver Coastal Health

August Calendar for South Vancouver ADC

August Calendar for Beulah

Meet Me: Making Art Accessible to People with Dementia

For the past few years, the staff at Beulah have been facilitating an art program developed by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Originally an onsite program designed for people with dementia and their caregivers to enjoy together at the MoMA, Meet Me: Making Art Accessible to People with Dementia, has been extended to twelve online modules that can be facilitated by any interested seniors organization. Each module is developed around a theme and contains the instructions, images and information required to facilitate one discussion session and one art-making session using different media ranging from watercolour paints to clay.

To prepare for the discussion sessions, staff review the chosen module, do a bit of research to supplement the information provided about the piece and/or artist and print a few copies of the art images to pass around during the discussion. To faciliate the discussion, we use a laptop, projector and screen to present the images and discuss the questions and topics provided with each module. We’ve found these art programs to be informative and accessible for our clients and staff; the information provided is not difficult to present or understand and we’ve had many engaging conversations about different art pieces that have sparked interest in participants.  So far, our favourite modules have been Family Pictures and Music and Art. To prepare for the art making sessions, we review the activity and gather the materials listed in the module instrutions. Sometimes we modify the activity to reflect the interests and abilities of our participants.

Developing unique programs that are meaningful for a wide range of people can be challenging. That’s why we were so happy to find an art program that has already been developed, but which can also be modified to reflect the interests and abilities of our clients. This program can also be facilitated by family members or paid caregivers in the home using a laptop or an ipad and there are also instructions for developing your own modules, based on the interests of the user. For more information, see the MoMA website for information on how you can facilitate this program.