Newly opened care home Bucklow Manor in Cheshire has had a Sensory Room designed and installed by Rhino UK.
The Sensory Room is used for Namaste Therapy, featuring a mixture of sensory resources to encourage relaxation and stimulation for the residents; including, projection lighting, aroma fans, fibre optics, a Hurricane Tube and more.
What is Namaste Care?
It is important that we help people living with advanced Dementia live and not just exist. Keeping a person clean, fed and groomed is not living; this is merely existing. People need to be engaged in meaningful activities and feel wanted and loved. In recent years a lot of research has gone into this subject, and you may have come across the terminology ‘Namaste Care’. Namaste Care is a program designed to improve the quality of life for people with advanced Dementia. Namaste is a Hindu term meaning “to honour the spirit within” and was selected for this program to bring honour to those who can no longer tell us who they are or care for themselves without assistance. Namaste involves one-to-one care during daily sessions in a comfortable, communal space with gentle stimulation of the senses.
Bucklow Manor has devised a Namaste Care Programme to provide daily therapy sessions and one-to-one sessions for their residents. The programme is full of meaningful activities that help bring pleasure to people with advanced dementia or those with physical or mental impairments.
Donna, the Care Home Manager, commented that there had been some very positive outcomes for residents who have participated in the Namaste Sessions, including:
- A reduction in falls
- A steady increase in weight as appetites have increased
- Improvements in communication skills
- Periods of anxiety and agitation have reduced
Staff involved in the Namaste sessions report that they feel a sense of achievement and are proud to be part of delivering the programme to residents in their care. They feel that the quality time they’re spending with residents makes a real difference in their lives.
The sensory room has also become valued by families that visit the home with young children. They enjoy many hours in the sensory room with their relatives, and stress and anxiety have been significantly reduced throughout these visits.
The team at Rhino UK are delighted with the outcome and look forward to working with Donna and the team at Bucklow Manor in the future.
