Quality and Meaning of Acitivities: Enough Stimulation?

The Series: Elements of Planning and Coordinating Successful Activities
4. Quality and Meaning of Activities: Enough Stimulation?

Quality and meaning of activities are another factor when we plan and coordinate successful activities. Our clients with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia need to have frequent stimulation physically and mentally in order to retain their current functioning level. Every activity is supposed to help clients reaching their goals and an activity should maintain certain quality and meaning in itself when it is carried out.

What do we mean quality and meaning in regards to activities?
a. Quality of Activities
-Our clients with memory impairment have symptoms of forgetfulness, inability to take care of themselves gradually, and incapability of thinking reasonably. However, they need to be treated as grown-up and senior individuals in the respectful way. Successful activities for them should not be one for children. Here is the quality of activities comes up to be discussed.
-Is a planned activity simple enough for the targeted clients?
-We mean “the quality of activities” that is simple enough that the targeted clients can participate in, enjoy, reach their aimed goals, be protected safely from expected happenings (except unexpected happenings/incidents as these could happen even in a well-calculated situation/environment).

b. Meaning of Activities
-We engage and interact with senior individuals who have been through their lives that may be filled with a lot of happiness, sadness, anger, and grief. We, as activities professionals, should consider their lives fully to plan and coordinate meaningful and respectful activities. In that sense, meaningful activities could be related to the result of our activities assessment (was discussed in “Assessment of Participants in Activities: Activities Version of Care Management”).
-It is ideal if we can plan an individual meaningful activity per a client; however, it will not be possible to do so due to time limitation, staffing, functioning levels and so on.
-At our Day Care Center, we are still able to stimulate clients in few groups by providing reminiscence-related activities that clients as a whole group can appreciate, enjoy recalling their past, discuss and exchange their memories. We strongly believe these activities are very meaningful and give positive stimulations to our clients.