In today’s senior care environment, the Activities Department has become a critical component in helping to deliver the highest practical level of physical, mental and psychosocial functioning. As seniors enter various senior venues (Long/short term facilities, Adult Day Care, Assisted Living, Nursing Homes), each is assessed to determine their interests, current level of functioning, and desires, and in an ideal world, every intent is made to offer activities (small or large group, or one on one) that are meaningful, person-centered and can enhance quality of life. Goals of some of the various activities are:
• Socialization (Fun, Pleasure, Enjoyment)
• Creative Expression
• Religious or Spiritual Expression
• Comfort and Relaxation
• Promotion of Independence
• Cognitive Improvement
• Opportunity to learn new skills, adapt old skills and enjoy new leisure experiences
At our facility, one of the most popular daily activities we offer is our morning “Wake and Shake†segment. We gather everyone into our main area where we have our Giant Screen TV and our iN2L computer system, and we boot up our Karaoke Music Software.
The software has several different genres of music including Classic Oldies, Love Songs, Country, Patriotic, Irish, and Spiritual. An Activity Assistant leads the session, selects a song, starts singing and dancing to the music encouraging participation amongst the participants, and before long, the entire group is singing along with the words on the screen and the more active participants are up dancing! The success of this segment really depends on the one leading the activity. The more energetic and engaged the staff member is, the more engaged the audience is. We dance with our participants, some dance alone or with each other, and those in wheel-chairs can be found tapping their hand to their leg, clapping their hands or tapping their feet. We find this to be a great way to start each day and it puts a smile on everyone’s face. Each segment ends with a Patriotic song (God Bless America, Star Spangled Banner, etc.), and with one of our participants holding the American Flag. Without being prompted, when we get to this part of the activity, each participant stands and either salutes or puts their hand over their heart, as they sing the words to a song that lives in their hearts from years gone by, and that makes them a part of something bigger than themselves. Benefits of this activity include:
• Socialization
• Memory recall which contributes to reminiscence and satisfaction with life
• Positive changes in mood and emotional states
• Higher self-esteem
• Reduced tension and relaxation
At times, this segment actually prompts “requestsâ€! The only challenge with this is the limitation of the software selections. We have been known to click over to YouTube to find a karaoke rendition of a requested song. I do believe this is everyone’s favorite part of each day!
