Customized Care Plans
Our residents receive tailored care plans that help them function safely within the assisted living facility. When the resident moves in, the family participates along with the staff to develop a coordinated plan specifically aligned with each resident's needs.
The plan includes an assessment of the resident's physical, psychosocial and medical needs which is reviewed and regularly updated by the staff as the resident's condition changes. The resident and family members along with the family doctor play an active role in creating, monitoring and updating the care plan.
The Method
Johnson Creek Village utilizes The GEMS™: Brain Change Model created by Teepa Snow, MS, OTR/L, FAOTA - a leading trainer and consultant providing support and care that places the person living with dementia in a pivotal role when determining what is needed.
Teepa's approach to dementia care and training is changing how many view neurodegenerative conditions and dementias, and how care is delivered throughout the US, Canada, Wales, and across the UK and Europe. As an occupational therapist with forty years of clinical practice, she has founded a company and an approach to support and engage people experiencing changes in brain function.
Teepa created the GEMS® States model for appreciating and supporting people as they progress through the brain changes of dementia. The GEMS model likens people to gemstones and focuses on supporting and fostering retained abilities by providing environmental and interaction cues. This allows us to match the needs, and provide necessary support, so that people can live well from the first symptoms until the end of life.
Just as gemstones need different care and settings to show their best characteristics, so do people. Rather than focusing on a person’s loss when there is brain change, seeing individuals as precious, unique, and capable encourages a care partnership that is the core of this model. The goal is to provide better support and care when someone is living with this ever-changing condition, helping them live fully in their moment.
Staff Training
All staff is required to attend Habilitation Therapy training, a type of therapy for Alzheimer’s disease and related forms of dementia. Habilitation Therapy allows people with the disease to retain their level of functioning by encouraging independence and providing a strong sense of purpose. It is considered to be the best practice in day to day care for people with Alzheimer’s and related forms of dementia.
There are five areas of focus within Habilitation Therapy that intend to illuminate a positive emotional response:
- Communication
- The Physical Environment
- The Approach to Personal Care
- Purposeful and Meaningful Engagement Throughout the Day
- Behavior as Communication
Although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, Habilitation Therapy has been shown to help ease the life of those living with memory loss. It has even been accepted by the Alzheimer’s Association as the best standard of care and psychosocial intervention.
