New bathtubs and a fresh new bathroom design make bathing safer and more enjoyable for residents of Acropolis Manor
Thanks to funding from the Provincial Health Authority and Arjo, a medical supply company, three new state-of-the-art bathtubs were recently installed at Acropolis Manor in Prince Rupert.
“It’s so relaxing, I could stay in it all day,” says one resident.
The new tubs have the following features:
- Lifts to help residents get in and out of tubs more safely.
- Integrated disinfectant dispensing systems to clean and disinfect the tubs and lifts.
- Anti-scalding protection, including a digital temperature display and easy touch controls.
- Temperature- and pressure-regulated mixing valves.
- Automatic hot water shutoff when the temperature exceeds safe levels.
- Emergency lowering in case of power outage.
- An increase in maximum weight capacity to 401 lbs.
As well, the facility’s manager, Marcie Garinger, ran a tub/shower room design contest for the care aides, because they’re the ones who help the residents at bath time. When designing their tub/shower rooms, contestants were asked to follow DementiAbility principles. As stated on DementiAbility.com, “DementiAbility focuses on creating opportunities for the person with dementia to support and enrich the body, mind and spirit in a prepared environment. DementiAbility strives to remove the focus that is too often placed on disability – replacing it with a focus on ability.”
Kim Nelson, care aide/activity worker, won the design contest. Congratulations to Kim! Her prize was a purple T-shirt with the words, “Dementia, meet them where they are.” Her winning design included:
- Lavender walls; according to DementiAbility, lavender is a calming bathroom colour.
- New wall decals, door, cabinet, wall mirror, and bathmat to make the room feel more like a regular bathroom.
“We want their home at Acropolis Manor to be more like a real home and similar to what they used to live in, and less institutional,” says Marcie.
Comments