STAFF EDUCATION

While many senior living communities will say that their team members receive dementia training, that training is often represented by a short, in-person overview of the basics of dementia. In contrast, at Brookridge, team members all receive five and a half hours of dementia education through Dementia By Day School. The course is an in-depth look at dementia and dementia caregiving, especially in a senior living setting. Team members receive education on the basics of dementia as a group of diseases, how to communicate with individuals living with dementia, how to troubleshoot challenging dementia-related situations, the importance of using improvisational theater in communication, all about programming, interior design, dining, personal care, and even how to better communicate with residents’ families. Leadership team members also go through the Program Director course, which is an additional two hours of education on setting up and executing on a dementia care calendar.

The main focus of the education is on the concept of Embracing Their Reality™: how can we live in the world of the person living with dementia, no matter where that reality lives? How can we do what is true for them without feeling like we’re “lying” by doing so? We want our team members to feel at ease communicating with their residents, and we want our families to look to our team members for guidance.