Senior Retirement Residence Kansas City Music Therapy For Dementia Care
Senior retirement residence Kansas City uses music to benefit seniors with dementia, helping reduce anxiety, fall rates and hospitalization. Importantly, listening to meaningful music taps into the senior’s memory and gives them a renewed enthusiasm for life. Care facilities can help lessen the impact of dementia when they implement therapeutic music therapy as a treatment modality.
Dementia is a progressive condition that can, in some cases, can cause hallucinations, agitation, belligerence and aggression. Others become withdrawn, lethargic and have difficulty waking. Common to all is confusion, disorientation and a disconnect with reality. Of great concern, according to an article published by Harvard Medical School, about a third of seniors with dementia are at greater risk of additional health complications, and the risk of death is significant. For this reason, it is imperative that senior retirement residence Kansas City find ways of diminishing the effects of dementia on residents of their facility.
Clover Care Home senior retirement residence Kansas City understands the risks associated with dementia, and continue to look for ways to help our residents. In particular, we have found that including therapeutic music therapy as an essential part of our care protocols can change our residents’ lives in significant ways. This theory is supported by an important study published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry which states that music and memory therapy, personalized to the person listening, can break through cognitive barriers and improve symptoms of dementia in people with the disease. Further, other studies have shown that a combination of treatment modalities can reduce the impact of dementia, and have been extremely effective in treating many chronic health conditions like heart disease, HIV/AIDS, rheumatoid arthritis and cancer, for example.
Clover Care’s staff make it their goal to get to know each one of our residents on an individual basis, and learn their particular likes and interests, including the types of music they enjoy. Creating personalized music playlists is especially beneficial for helping our seniors stay connected and engaged with their family and others. Along with consistent physical, occupational and speech therapy, and promoting each person’s independence with activities of daily living, listening to music as part of the life enrichment activities we offer helps residents stay oriented to their surroundings and current events. It also lowers their heart rate and blood pressure, which eases anxiety and helps them sleep. It also helps reduce their reliance on medications for pain management and relieves confusion and depression.
Music can be uplifting, encouraging interactions with others; it can also be soothing and calming. There are a number of ways in which senior retirement residence Kansas City can implement music, such as scheduling live musical performances during meals, religious services and other group activities. Not only does listening to music help residents, but it also increases the morale of staff members and enhances bonding between staff and residents’ family members. Clover Care Home has found that residents with anxiety and depression are less agitated and appear calmer. Music has the ability to transport them to a different place and time, stirring emotions and memories that were long forgotten.
When you are searching for the right senior retirement residence Kansas City for yourself or a loved one, we encourage a visit to Clover Care Home, where residents experience the fullness of life in a community with the highest levels of independence their health will allow.
Call Clover Care Home today at 913-991-2605, to arrange a consultation, or visit us online.