Making a Difference in Dementia Care

MUNDELEIN, Ill., June 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- There's no place like home, until a loved one suffering from advancing stages of Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia requires more care than family members can provide. Then, there's no place like Thrive Memory Care of Lake County, where professionally trained staff and proven programs benefit both residents and their families.

Thrive is one of 21 JCAHO-certified, dedicated memory care facilities in the U.S., out of the nearly 9,000 listed memory communities, and it is only one of a handful that specialize in long- and short-term care for both dementia and Alzheimer's residents. Thrive's memory care program is considered the gold-standard in memory care, having earned both accreditation and certification.

Getting to Know You

What makes Thrive unique is its resident-centered approach to helping residents maintain cognition for as long as possible.

Every resident undergoes a series of cognitive assessments upon admission, given by Thrive therapists to determine where they are in the disease process and to evaluate balance and mobility for safety. "While all memory care residents have some degree of dementia, Alzheimer's is the most prevalent form," explains Memory Care Director Vicki Rogers, CDP.

"Therapist-led evaluations upon admission for all residents are unique to Thrive," adds Rogers. "Because of reimbursement issues most places don't have therapists perform evaluations. We see establishing a good functional baseline when residents move in as critical, otherwise we may miss early declines. We frequently receive comments from family members of residents who transfer in from other facilities, 'We had more communication with you in the first week than we did with staff from the other facility during the entire stay.' "

In addition to cognitive and physical assessments, Thrive representatives conduct in-depth family interviews and collect family photos. They gather as much information about residents as possible to create a special LifeBio, which gives staff members information to help them relate to their residents' pasts since many residents do not function in the present.

An interdisciplinary team comprised of therapists, nurses, the unit director, and events coordinator, determine a personalized care plan based on assessment results as well as family interviews. Everything, including the residents' usual wake up times, and favorite foods are taken into consideration.   

"The whole point of dementia care is to figure out where a resident is functioning," says Director of Therapy Debbie Kaylor, OTR/L. "The residents aren't in a position to learn new skills, so we have to adjust our environment to match their abilities.

"A lot of assisted living and skilled nursing facilities that do not specialize in memory don't understand this perspective. They expect residents to adapt to their environment."

Continue reading about Thrive's commitment to patient care through its multi-faceted, patient-centered memory care program at: https://thriveahead.com/2021/06/thrive-memory-care-of-lake-county

Media Contact:

Lisa Henderson

773-875-5956

[email protected]

SOURCE Thrive Memory Care of Lake County

Related Links

https://thriveahead.com/