THE SURFACE of interior design, including flooring choices, can impact dementia patients in care homes.
within the room. A contrast between the wall and floor design can also reassure patients, making it clear where flooring boundaries are, and reducing the risk of any accidents.
Again, you can increase confidence and reduce the chance of an accident by choosing carpet, which can provide a soft floorcovering with substantial grip. Carpet also has the added advantage of providing a homely feel, which can give a familiar reassurance to residents. Then there’s the tactile element: Anything that we can touch, or that touches us, is stimulating; the brain is stimulated and receives messages by the feel of an object or fabric. A note of caution, though, when it comes to patterns: whilst small coloured flecks within a carpet can bring a sense of style to a care home, more intricate patterns, such as floral designs could be perceived as real flowers, causing further unnecessary disorientation and confusion.
The choice of furniture is another key consideration. It reflects the issues surrounding flooring requirements and should be undertaken equally sensitively, considering the specific needs of the dementia patient. One of the main symptoms of dementia is confusion so it’s important that there are carefully chosen items of furniture in shared areas like corridors to help residents recognise exactly where they are. Signage and different coloured handrails can also help.
Standard items of furniture like wardrobes and chests of drawers should be honed down and simple, with easy access so that carers can help residents to manage their clothing and not become overwhelmed by choice. There should also be easy to use handles and, either open sections to the wardrobe or, glass panels so that a patient with dementia can find what they need fairly easily. This enables them to retain some independence.
Regardless of the patient’s condition, easy-wipe surfaces are a requirement for all care homes, however, to avoid confusion, dementia sufferers are more likely to benefit from a subtler choice of fabrics. The more homely the furniture, the better; this will provide some comfort and evoke memories. Scala Twist from CFS is available in a range of neutral homely colours and is an ideal product to specify in care facilities due to its impervious foam backing, reducing damage from any liquid spills, as well as having bleach-cleanable fibres. The foam backing also contributes to thermal and acoustic insulation, an important considering in care homes which can be noisy.
Finally, there are certain finishing touches that can be included in a patient’s personal living space or bedroom that can provide great benefits. He or she might not be able to get out to walk by the beach or in the countryside but tactile elements of those environments such as pieces of bark and fern or pots of pebbles, shells and sand can be brought into the care home environment so that certain pleasant memories can be triggered and enjoyed.
Dementia sufferers can remember incidents from long ago and so rooms can be set aside for this express purpose and personal memory boxes created for residents to put aside pictures and objects that are special to them and allow them an opportunity to reminisce.
There has to be a balance between what meets with health and safety requirements, and is appropriate to the environment, and what will make a difference to the resident and support and enhance their quality of life. What’s most important, however, is that that balance is maintained and the latter is not overlooked in favour of maintaining the first two.
CFS Scala Twist is available through Carpet & Flooring and is on promotion until 28th September. Call up your local CFS stockists, Carpet & Flooring branches for more information.
www.cfscarpets.co.uk
CFS Scala Solutions, colour Nimbus 870P fitted at Coldwells Care Home, Hereford
twitter.com/TContractFloors @Flooring_CFS
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