Dementia care
presumably because these items were moved and used for non-Namaste purposes in between sessions.
Drink/snack corner Promoting nutrition and hydration during Namaste Care is important. One care home had a particularly large and well- equipped dedicated Namaste space, which allowed the creation of a drink/snack corner. This included a fridge, kettle, teapot and appropriate crockery for the residents attending the session. In addition, a great deal of thought was
put into creating and resourcing the space. This enhanced the sessions and made the process much easier for staff delivering Namaste Care to promote food and drink consumption during the session. Having a well-equipped food and drink
station also gives the opportunity for residents to explore taste and texture during the Namaste session. One care home chef created well-presented, unique and flavoursome food specifically for that day’s session. The food corresponded with the theme of the session. For example, the environment was filled with the scent of lavender and lemon aromatherapy oils, while residents were offered jugs of lemon infused water and lavender and lemon desserts. This was to offer a greater sensory experience for residents.
Additional beneficial environmental components Identifying and sourcing the equipment to use in the Namaste Care session was a key part of the implementation process, and one that appeared to cohere the care home’s vision of Namaste Care and ignite the interest and pride of staff and visitors. The list below includes a number of
items that were found to be beneficial in the care homes’ Namaste rooms. Not all care homes had every item but each was shown to have advantages in facilitating the Namaste sessions for staff if they were in place: l Blackout curtains. l Net curtains. l Cushions & soft blankets. l Fridge.
Acknowledgments
This research was funded by a three-year implementation grant from the Alzheimer’s Society. Grant number 293 (AS-IGF–15-001). This research was led by the Association for Dementia Studies at University of Worcester and ably supported by our Namaste Care Intervention UK collaborator group, including Joyce Simard, originator of Namaste Care (University of Western Sydney). The team is particularly grateful to the care home staff, families and residents who have contributed their time and experiences.
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l Kettle and tea-making facilities. l Fans. l Side tables for each resident. l Stools and chairs for staff members to sit on.
l Multiple electric points for lamps, CD player, diffuser and fish tanks.
l Music - TV/DVD/CD player that all staff can use.
Finally, while the four issues highlighted here had an impact on sessions for staff and residents, it was the thoughtful use of such items that was most important.
Conclusion Namaste Care is a complex intervention made up of multiple components. The research conducted by the Association for Dementia Studies has shown that an important and necessary contributing factor to delivering successful Namaste sessions for people living with dementia is to sensitively consider the space and overall environment in which it is being delivered. By combining a well thought out, well
equipped and accessible environment with attentive person-centred care from trained staff, Namaste Care has been proven to be an impactful way to care for people with advanced dementia living in care homes. A small investment in additional
resources and staff time to prepare for Namaste Care makes implementation easier as does a dedicated space, although it is possible to implement Namaste without this. Residents in the Namaste Care
environment were more able and more likely to engage with stimuli and experiences in the session with little direct input from staff. Unstructured activities were successful because the environment facilitated a person’s focus and relaxation in the space. This is something which is often not possible for people with advanced dementia in the noisy, busy care home environment. TCHE
References 1 Simard, J. (2013). The End-of-Life Namaste Program for People with Dementia. (2nd
Ed.) London, UK: Health Professions Press.
2 Latham, I., Brooker, D., Bray, J., Jacobson- Wright, N. and Frost, F. (2020). The Impact of Implementing a Namaste Care Intervention in UK Care Homes for People Living with Advanced Dementia, Staff and Families. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17(16), p. 6004.
3 Bray J., Brooker D., Latham I., Wray F., Baines D. Costing resource use of the Namaste Care Intervention UK: a novel framework for costing dementia care interventions in care homes. Int Psychogeriatrics. 2019 Feb 21:1- 10.
4 Bray, J., Atkinson, T., Latham, I., Brooker, D. (2019). Practice of Namaste Care for people living with dementia in the UK. Nursing Older People, 31(1), 22–28.
Faith Frost
Faith Frost is a research associate at the Association for Dementia studies at the University of Worcester. Faith was research
associate on Namaste Care Intervention UK research project.
Teresa Atkinson
Teresa Atkinson is a senior research fellow with the Association for Dementia Studies at the University of Worcester
leading on creating optimal environments for people with dementia. She leads the fully online module ‘Enabling Environments for people with dementia’ comprised within the Post Graduate Certificate in Person-Centred Dementia Care.
Dr. Isabelle Latham
Dr. Isabelle Latham is a senior lecturer and was project lead for the namaste Care Intervention UK research project.
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com• December 2020
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