Article in CBC News
Why 'dementia villages' might be the future of care for people with Alzheimer's
Founder of Hogewey, Dutch ‘village’ for people with dementia, in Calgary to talk senior care.
The future of Alzheimer’s care might soon look less like a sterile hospital environment, and more like a cozy little neighbourhood.
The concept, known as a dementia village, is already being tested in Holland. There, patients with varying stages of dementia live in homes of five or six residents. There’s a grocery store, gardens and community gathering spaces.
But behind the scenes, the village still operates as a nursing home, with trained practitioners there to take care of residents.
“We said, ‘let’s create something people will feel [is] comfortable, cozy, recognizable,” Eloy van Hal told the Calgary Eyeopener. “We transformed the traditional nursing home into a traditional neighbourhood where people could continue their life. And we focused on what they still can do.”
Van Hal was in Calgary Tuesday speaking to seniors’ care workers about the dementia village, called Hogewey. He said the concept is all about “social inclusion,” something that’s often missing from traditional methods of care.
“The little neighbourhood is open to everybody but officially we are still a nursing home,” he said. “I always say backstage we are a nursing home, a non-profit, state-funded nursing home. But on stage, what you see and what you experience when you walk through it and when you visit is a little neighbourhood.”