{"id":11302,"date":"2017-02-01T07:00:54","date_gmt":"2017-02-01T13:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=11302"},"modified":"2020-10-13T18:26:18","modified_gmt":"2020-10-13T23:26:18","slug":"a-modern-dementia-care-experiment-in-an-old-fashioned-setting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2017\/02\/a-modern-dementia-care-experiment-in-an-old-fashioned-setting\/","title":{"rendered":"A Modern Dementia-Care Experiment in an Old-Fashioned Setting"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Modern Dementia-Care Experiment in an Old-\"A<\/a>Fashioned Setting<\/h1>\n

A San Diego dementia-care day program plans to help seniors feel more comfortable by using movie-set design techniques to recreate streetscapes from their youth. The project will feature \u201850s-era music and films, a vintage jukebox, and even a 1959 Ford Thunderbird. Developers hope the project will bring up positive memories for people in the program, and the concept has some lessons for anyone who cares for a parent with dementia.<\/p>\n

What the Town Square center will offer to seniors<\/h2>\n

The Glenner Center<\/a><\/strong> is building the \u201850s-themed Town Square center, which is scheduled to open in 2018. Unlike Glenner\u2019s other adult day programs for people with dementia, this one will have the sights and sounds of the \u201850s and \u201860s throughout, thanks to retro \u201cstorefronts\u201d designed by San Diego Opera\u2019s Scenic Studios to evoke the shops, diners, and streetscapes of mid-20th<\/sup> century Southern California, all within a 15,000-square foot building for sidewalk strolls in all weather. Each shop or stop along the way will offer something for seniors to do, whether it\u2019s watching a favorite film from their youth, making art and crafts, or enjoying a hot cup of joe.<\/p>\n

Why planners focused on young-adult experiences<\/h2>\n

The ambitious project isn\u2019t cheap. The projected cost is $3 million, and the Glenner Center has set up a fundraising page to help defray the costs of the dementia-care project<\/a><\/strong>. But the center, which was founded by USCD Alzheimer\u2019s researcher Dr. George Glenner, hopes that the set designs and streetscape will give participants \u201ca higher quality of life; specifically, anticipated improved mood, reduced agitation and improved sleep patterns.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the Glenner Center\u2019s cornerstones for working with dementia patients is reminiscence therapy<\/a><\/strong>, which uses vintage everyday items and media to spark memories in patients. The center\u2019s CEO told the San Diego Reader that over the course of a lifetime, memories made between the ages of 15 and 35 tend to be the most durable. For Glenner participants, most of whom are in their 80s, that makes the late \u201850s and early \u201860s the ideal date range for remembering special moments. Those memories can help them feel connected to their surroundings, which may help relieve some of the disorientation many people with dementia feel.<\/p>\n

How to use reminiscence therapy techniques with loved ones<\/h2>\n

According to The Atlantic, which published a feature story on the Glenner Center\u2019s Town Square project<\/a><\/strong>, reminiscence therapy is a longstanding approach to helping people with dementia. Using RT can be as simple as leafing through an old photo album together, listening to vintage records, or talking about adventures and people from decades past.<\/p>\n

If you have a parent with dementia, knowing that earlier memories are often the strongest can make it easier to make better connections. These items may spark conversations:<\/p>\n