Designing for Dementia: 4 Design Principles for Better Aged Care Homes

by Ralph Trayfalgar

(Note: This is a sample article published as part of an author portfolio. Please do not reuse the following content, in whole or in part, for your website.)

Aged care in Australia has seen a lot of improvements over the past several years, with many aged care facilities today giving our elderly a much higher level of care and quality of life than ever before. While the aged care industry has certainly benefited from these improvements as a whole, there are challenges that aged care providers have yet to overcome in order to provide the best possible care for the elderly.

In particular, the growing number of cases of dementia among the senior population has called for changes and additions to aged care programmes to better cater to these patients.

Because dementia does not affect memory in a consistently predictable way, people with dementia tend to deal with the condition in different ways. For this reason, caring for people with dementia requires an approach that is more involved and tailored to the person's specific needs.

Besides the care and support that is given to the patient, the design of the aged care facility itself must also be considered in order to create an environment that allows its residents to live in comfort while still providing all of the support systems of a traditional aged care programme.

In this article, we will be going through a few notable design elements that could help improve a resident's stay at an aged care home.

Familiarity

With memory loss being one of the primary signs of dementia, aged care residents would feel much more comfortable and willing to live in an aged care facility that looks and feels like the homes that they remember, as opposed to a living environment that is more akin to a hospital ward.

This can be achieved by designing places where residents will spend most of their time in, such as living quarters, lounges, activity areas, and communal spaces with colours, furniture, décor, and other elements that the residents are likely to be familiar with.

While typical aged care facilities can get away with the straight lines and bright, colourful designs as is typical of more modern design trends, seniors with dementia are likely to respond better to designs that hearken to their youth, such as softer tones, floral patterns, and more ornate wood and ceramics.

Independence

Research has found that a lot of seniors with dementia are unaware of their condition and will continue to live their lives as they have.

Keeping this and the idea of familiarity in mind, an aged care facility that caters to dementia patients should be designed with a dedicated living area in which each resident can spend time alone or with a few other residents. This helps to further the impression of a free and open living environment that is similar to life in a regular neighbourhood.

While some residents may require assistance for performing basic tasks and chores such as cooking, cleaning their living quarters, and doing the laundry, most would prefer to do it on their own terms and would appreciate having self-service kitchens and laundry rooms within the aged care facility for these tasks.

Accessibility

As one gets older and their bones and muscles weaken, getting around will no doubt be an issue. The interior layout must be carefully planned to make sure that its residents can safely and easily access the amenities within the facility.

In addition, designers will also want to plan out the location of the facility itself so that residents can be integrated into, rather than isolated from, the surrounding community; allowing residents to participate in activities in the community outside of the aged care home can greatly reduce feelings of loneliness or isolation during their stay.

Security

While security will always be a key design factor in any aged care home, designers must also try to avoid having "too much" security in the facility, as having too many security measures installed in the aged care home can cause unease and distress among the residents.

It is important to avoid making residents feel like they are being watched or locked away, which can be done by encouraging interactions between the residents and members of the surrounding community.

Conclusion

The key idea to take away when designing an aged care facility for residents with dementia is to treat them with respect and dignity. Although they may be advanced in age, our elderly still deserve to have the liberty to do chores and recreational activities on their own terms without excessive oversight or hand-holding.

By following the design principles discussed in this article, aged care providers can design and build a facility that better caters to the specific and unique needs of those living with dementia, improving the care they receive and creating positive experiences for this stage in their lives.