Resident Safety – The HPP Resource Center

Category: Resident Safety

Behind Locked Doors: Segregation in Memory Care

Memory care is the fastest-growing area of senior living. It is now standard for assisted living communities and nursing homes to designate an area for a secure unit, usually with a coded keypad on the door. This is where the residents living with dementia will live, segregated from the rest of the residents. Often these secured units, with their extra charges, are the most expensive areas to live. I have worked as a registered nurse long enough to remember when it was also standard to tie people in their chairs or beds “for their own good.” None of us would…

Can We Achieve Drug-Free Dementia Care?

It may seem unrealistic to expect that we can care for people without using any psychotropic drugs for their various expressions. What is clear, however, is that a new approach to dementia can drastically reduce the use of these medications, making them the exception rather than the rule. We have seen a similar learning curve with the use of physical restraints in nursing homes. Due to the tireless work of pioneers, including Carter Catlett Williams, Lois Evans, and Neville Strumpf, these once-common features of nursing homes are rapidly disappearing. Many nursing homes are now restraint-free; I have not personally ordered…

The Top 3 Things You Need to Know About Harmful Interactions Between Residents with Dementia

In his book, Understanding and Preventing Harmful Interactions Between Residents with Dementia, Eilon Caspi, Ph.D., has three key things he wants readers to know about this phenomenon. 1. In the vast majority of distressing and harmful resident-to-resident interactions, people living with dementia “fight” with each other in an effort to preserve their dignity. In the words of Joanne Koenig Coste, “Alzheimer’s disease doesn’t take the person’s dignity away. We do.” Next time you notice a resident with dementia engaged in an episode with another resident, observe it carefully, and try to look at it through the lens of…

7 Strategies to Address Racism and Stereotyping in Long-Term Care

Many elders grew up in an era and in regions where racist practices were prevalent and accepted as the norm. Some of these people held racist views from their youth and continue to hold these beliefs throughout their lives, whether they openly express these views in public or suppress them as racism becomes increasingly unaccepted and condemned over the years. When these individuals develop dementia and move into long-term care homes, some may continue to express their long-held racist views toward other residents and direct care partners, especially under distressing day-to-day situations. As Alzheimer’s disease progresses, the cognitive filters that…

5 Solutions to Improve Communication and Reporting

The majority of distressing and harmful resident-to-resident interactions (DHRRIs) remain unreported. Underreporting of these episodes limits direct care partners’ ability to understand the root causes of these behavioral expressions; identify underlying unmet needs, situational frustrations, and triggering events; and anticipate and prevent future incidents. This lack of reporting is important generally but also because many of these behavioral expressions are recurrent. In addition, problems with information transfer between direct care partners, between direct care partners and managers, and between employees from different departments and disciplines is also a persistent problem in many long-term care homes. These communication lapses and breakdowns…

Why We Don’t Call it Resident-to-Resident “Aggression”

Words matter, a lot. Words used to describe elders living with dementia reflect and shape the ways in which they are perceived by direct care partners, which profoundly influences the ways in which they are approached, cared for, and treated. Imagine that you and I are elders with dementia living in a care home. I invade your personal space ten times over a period of 15 minutes. At first you respond politely by asking me to leave the area, but the invasions continue and gradually you lose your patience and become very angry. Direct care partners are not in the…

Caregiver Stress Exercises During COVID-19

It’s critical to manage your own stress so you can keep assisting others. Find the strategy that works for you with these self-care exercises. Mental Imagery You can use this relaxation technique alone or in conjunction with other relaxation techniques. Remember, practicing relaxation techniques for 10-20 minutes per day can be very helpful in managing the negative side effects of stress on your mental and physical heath. Sit or lie down in a comfortable position where you will not be disturbed for 10-20 minutes. Close your eyes and imagine yourself in a pleasant, relaxing place, such as a beach, a…

Nursing Homes Need Support, Not Blame

By Jill Vitale-Aussem, LNHA, MMH, author of Disrupting the Status Quo of Senior Living: A Mindshift This post was originally shared on www.jillvitaleaussem.com and has been re-posted here with permission. View the original post here. I had hoped, with the current focus on healthcare workers as heroes, that the demonizing of nursing homes would cease during the pandemic. It hasn’t. I’ve seen very few news stories blaming hospitals when patients die from COVID-19 but nearly every story about people dying in a nursing home outbreak somehow blames the nursing home. While there are always some bad apples,…

Putting into Action Doing Better Together: Four How-Tos and a Self-Assessment

The blueprint for performance-based outcomes, A Long-Term Care Leader’s Guide to High Performance comes with a downloadable resource that shares how-to guides for four key areas in “attaining or maintaining the highest practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being” of your residents: Three Steps to Transforming the Medication Pass: Individualizing Care and Managing Workflow Rethinking the Use of Position-Change Alarms Eliminating Off-Label Use of Antipsychotics: A 10-Step Guide for Nursing Homes MUSIC & MEMORY℠: Implementation Steps to Maximize Benefits: A Nursing Home Leader’s Guide These are all win-win changes that benefit residents and staff. In this resource, Cathie Brady, David…

How to Prevent Hypothermia in Older People

Harsh winter temperatures increase the risk of hypothermia in older people, which puts them in real danger of severe health problems such as heart attacks and kidney damage. When freezing conditions strike, it’s vital to know how to keep older relatives safe from hypothermia and what to do if you notice warning signs of a drop in their body temperature. This is a guest post by Michael Leavy, Managing Director of Home Healthcare Adaptations, a family-run company that specializes in adapting homes for the elderly and less abled. To learn more, visit…

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