Resident engagement
and physical health of those who are not the most mobile. Carefully-planned yoga exercises done from the seat of a chair encourages gentle movement that releases endorphins and increases blood flow, helping residents maintain muscle and feel more confident in how their bodies move. Group yoga sessions might help
alleviate the awkwardness that could come with an individual yoga session and encourage those who might have been too shy to participate.
Relaxing: sensory therapy Active activities like knitting or yoga may not be the only way to engage your residents; calmer passive activities such as listening to music or sitting in a room illuminated by calming mood lighting could be a more effective way to engage residents. The idea behind this concept is sensory therapy, where senses are used to relax the body and the mind. Senses are the way we experience and understand the world around us. Without them, things can seem dull and grey. For
example, think about when you have had a cold and lost your sense of taste, and you find that the experience of eating food suddenly goes from enjoyable to incredibly functional. Likewise, in our later years, our sensory
systems become less sensitive to outside stimulants - e.g. needing to turn up the volume on your TV to properly hear it - and the world can unwillingly become greyer. Sensory therapy stimulates these under-stimulated senses, uplifts moods, and adds colour to residents’ sensory landscapes. Just like our senses, sensory therapy
is multifaceted. There are many ways to effectively stimulate residents ‘ senses, from specially designed multisensory rooms filled with soft furnishings and interactive resources to smaller handheld devices and homemade therapies. Here are two simple ways you could try today.
Mood lighting Bright white lights are commonplace in care facilities. They are practical, but they are also troublesome, affecting energy levels and sometimes causing migraines. Mood lighting is an easy and effective way to transform rooms and transfix minds colourfully. Blue, red, and purple lighting can calm residents, whereas greens, oranges and pinks can energise and uplift moods. Mood lighting is also helpful in
expressive therapeutic activities, where residents express how they are feeling through their choice of coloured lighting. It allows carers to get a better idea of their mood and mental health, helping to guide activities that suit their moods and emotions.
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Sensory spas Bringing a sensory spa to your care home is another practical way to provide engaging, therapeutic activities for your residents. Hand rubs, foot rubs, back massages and facial treatments provide excellent tactile and proprioceptive input, which can be effective at calming muscles, relieving pain, and helping residents feel comfortable and present in their bodies. You can easily create a more immersive sensory spa experience by stimulating more of bodies senses, like turning down the lights (visual), playing calming music (sound), and using scented oils with the massage treatments (smell). These simple elements brought together help to create a special and personal experience that will make your residents feel important and cared for.
Best all-rounder: interactive projectors Technology is great at keeping us connected to our friends and family, and it is also great at keeping us connected to ourselves. Interactive projection is not an entirely new concept, but its implementation in care home therapy is starting to gain traction, and there are many good reasons why. All interactive projectors need to work is a
flat space and movement, which gives care environments the flexibility and freedom to project and play wherever best suits their residents, whether that is on top of a table in the community activity room or directly on top of a resident’s bed. They also come pre-loaded with a library of inclusive games and activities that are designed to support therapeutic movement and improve mental and emotional wellbeing.
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com • October 2021
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