Park Avenue care centre in south east London, built in 2004 and spread over three floors is one of the few care homes using the Namaste programme - a systematic method of treating people with advance dementia developed in America. Inside, the communal rooms have a relaxed atmosphere with calming music and soft lights, residents sit on armchairs having their nails painted and hands massaged. Namaste is all about the touch and one to one contact, engaging with the person and understanding them. Kim Bush, business manager at Park Avenue speaks with passion about the services Park Avenue offers through Namaste ‘we have ballet for the residents which is about improving their core strength’ she speaks of their part time physiotherapist ‘ we are very keen that people are as mobile and physically fit as the can be’, and something about this approach must be working because as Kim tells me ‘we have had two recent successes where we have been able to rehabilitate residents well enough so that they can go back to their family and community.’
On her motivation for entering this profession Kim is very clear ‘I went into the caring profession as a result of having a very disabled brother myself, I think that made me quite sensitive and aware of disability’, as Kim recounts her experience with disability and the impression it made upon her as a child it is clear that Park Avenue is a place she feels passionately about. Kim qualified as a social worker in 1989, her specialist pathway was older people and mental health and now she works with intense capability and vigour for the programme she has so much belief in. Namaste. Kim believes that namaste ‘offers a homely friendly environment where we welcome people and make them feel comfortable.’
Namaste is something the staff are ardently enthusiastic about, rather than a strict regime, carers can take their time to have a chat, it’s a humanitarian way to do things. Kim says ‘it’s about creating a safe environment and helping people feel relaxed to start their day.’ Park Avenue works hard to care for the individual, to make them feel valued and appreciated. One of the many ways in which Park Avenue accomplishes this aim is by the ‘resident a month’ system where once a month a resident is selected, as the winner they can then choose how to spend their special day. Kim said ‘I enjoy seeing the residents having a really good fun time, if the residents are involved in an activity that they really enjoy then I think that’s good day for them’ if that is the case then a good day must be every day because there is no shortage of activities available to the residents. As part of the Namaste programme residents have made cupcakes, sung with their friends and at the moment are participating in a pottery class. As people with advanced stage dementia Namaste is a very effective way of communicating and caring. Namaste brings something unique and revolutionary to the care of people with dementia, something that the current system in place in most care homes does not. Is the Namaste programme the future of advanced dementia care?
Amelia Mielniczek,
Bromley High School.
