Cedarhurst of Edwardsville Opens Memory Care Community Serving People Living with Alzheimer's and Related Memory Loss
St. Louis, Missouri (PRWEB) June 18, 2014 -- Cedarhurst has opened a memory care community in Edwardsville, IL. The new development offers a carefully designed program of memory care solutions, serving people with Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and other memory loss conditions. The community welcomed its first resident on April 17th.
Cedarhurst has named Anne Reynolds as Executive Director of the Edwardsville community. Reynolds has a BS in elementary education from St. Cloud University and a BS in social work from Mankato State University. Motivated by personal experience with Alzheimer’s in her family, Reynolds dedicated her career to memory care and previously served as Executive Director of Cedarhurst of Shiloh. Reynolds leads a team of professionals with expertise in memory care and senior living services. Each team member also completed the 12-hour “Person Centered Care Dementia” training by the Alzheimer’s Association, prior to the community's opening.
Cedarhurst of Edwardsville employs a memory care model sensitive to the fact that family members caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia often have a sense of urgency and need an immediate living solution. Residents move into Cedarhurst memory care community directly from living in their own home, through a doctor's referral, after a stay in the hospital or from assisted living communities that are not equipped to care for someone with Alzheimer's and other dementias.
Designed and constructed to enable supervised wandering by residents, Cedarhurst of Edwardsville was built with a loop, so residents can walk continuously throughout the community. There are no long corridors, and the design of the building allows for visual observation of each of the community’s 54 apartment doors, so Cedarhurst staff can monitor the environment 24/7, 365 days per year.
Following this year’s difficult winter season, Cedarhurst of Edwardsville encourages families to consider the upcoming summer and fall as an opportunity to overcome the safety issues and concerns associated with people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Warm weather months typically see more outdoor activity and overall mobility than during winter, and the potential increases for accidents related to memory issues. Something as simple as checking the mail can quickly turn into a life-changing event.
An important component of the Cedarhurst memory care model is the acquisition of a resident’s “life story” at the time of move-in. Based on discussions with loved ones, the life story helps staff understand key elements of the resident’s background such as what they did professionally, their veteran status, their favorite foods, and their preferred time of day to shower or perform other regular activities. This helps to design an individualized care plan to meet the specific needs of each person. Having a history about each individual resident helps Cedarhurst’s staff understand how to communicate better and relate best to the residents.
Krista Horn, Provision Living, http://www.provisionliving.com, +1 (314) 238-3815, [email protected]
Share this article