TROUBLE-FREE TRAINING MAKES LIFE EASIER FOR STAFF IN PROMOTING CARE
Staff training in memory care can be challenging. Either people get excited and engaged, but then the training materials collect dust on the shelf, or the trainer looks up and people are on their phones under the table. Leslie Fuller, founder and chief executive officer of Inspired Senior Care, wondered: How do we start impacting the culture of care we provide? How do we change the vision of what our residents need and what their life is?
Fuller said, “If you can get people to see things differently, they respond to residents in more constructive ways and seek different solutions.” Instead of jumping to prescribing a medication, team members will think deeper about what is bothering the individual – such as they have a toothache or broke their glasses and can’t see well. “There are so many things we can look at to alleviate distress,” said Fuller, adding, “Anxiety is a symptom. We need to look at the underlying causes.”
When staff are empowered through training, she said, they can support residents and give them a better quality of life, build trust, ease their stress and anxiety, and provide comfort. Conversely, if staff don’t feel like they have the tools to handle a situation, they get frustrated or feel like they are handling things well when they are actually doing more harm than good.
A common misunderstanding, Fuller suggested, is that staff can get to know residents just by spending time with them and “being nice, compassionate people.” However, she stressed the need for them to get to know individuals’ stories.
“This doesn’t just mean information about family, habits, hobbies, and careers, but also determining if they are introverts or extroverts, what motivates them, what stresses them out, etc.” She noted that it’s important not to just gather information, then sock it away and forget it.
Instead, she offered having a system in place where staff use this information to provide quality care. She recalled a situation where she found out a resident had been prom queen and a cheerleader. She started talking to the woman about this, and she lit up. Fuller said, “Staff were observing this and asked how I knew this. They didn’t know that there were life stories on the residents and what a goldmine of information this was.”
In the end, Fuller said, “You have to take the time and effort to seek the knowledge and information.” This requires some detective work. It may take days or weeks, but it increases the chance of success and ensuring happy, safe residents dramatically.
MAY/JUNE 2023
ARGENTUM.ORG 19
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