Memory Lane

     Walking into Heritage Springs Memory Care is like taking a trip down memory lane. As Frank Sinatra's voice fills the air with music from the 1950s, residents are sitting in the living room which is centered around a brick fireplace patiently waiting for lunch. The living room has Dark leather couches and patterned chairs with dark wood furniture. "Come on in" Kylee yells as she opens the French doors to the dining room. She immediately walks towards a small white haired old woman and says "come with me Janet." She takes Janet into the dining room and sits her down at her table. 

     Heritage Springs Memory care is thirty-four bed senior living home for people with all types of dementia. Dementia is a term to describe different disease processes that affect peoples memory. At every room there are built in shadow boxes that have the residents name, room number, pictures and small trinkets that the residents can identify as theirs. For example Janet's shadow box has a picture of her and her husband, a old postcard from Rome and a necklace with a cross. "Everybody in this facility has some type of memory loss" Kylee said. "most people can't remember what they had for lunch but can remember details from when they were younger". The disease process of losing your memory is actually harder on family members than it is on the residents. At some point they forget who their children are because in their minds they are children themselves. 

     

      Kylee starts off her work day waking the residents up and passing out medication. She and the other staff members help get them dressed, brush their teeth and hair and take them to the dining room for breakfast. After breakfast Kylee and other staff take them to the bathroom and then sit them in the living room. The living room is a large area filled with chairs and couches that surround a flat screen television mounted above a stone fireplace. Once everyone is settled into the living room a staff member reads them the newspaper, making sure to include the date. Next the residents can participate in outdoor activities such as ball toss walking and planting or they can watch television in the private living room down the hall. While the activities are taking place Kylee goes from room to room making beds and passing out clean laundry. After lunch they have a sing along and do arts and crafts in the activity room. Kylee passes out more medication and helps clean up from lunch. Some residents take naps and others sit outside socializing until dinner. After dinner is the most busy part of Kylee's day. She has to shower, weigh and do a regular check up on the residents for their records. "After they are done i take them to their rooms, change them and get them ready for bed." "This is definitely a tiring job" Kylee says.

     
     "Working here has made me want to further my education and become an LPN".  She explained that working at Heritage Springs makes her a happy person and that it never truly feels likes work. "At the end of the day you can tell you made a difference in their lives even if they only remember it for a second". She said her favorite part about her job is to see progression in attitude from when they move in to a couple months after. When they are living at home it is very stressful on them and their families. The family members who are taking care of the dementia patient normally don't understand how to deal with them so they get frustrated and can't help them. Heritage Springs provides a place for them to go and get taken care of.
   
     "Heritage Springs was open less than a year ago and is already filled" Kylee said. There is a need for this type of care. "Its sad that we have to put people on a waiting list when they are desperate for help." One specific room is personalized with pictures of grandchildren. A brown rocking chair with flowers carved into the wood is sitting next to the window with a blue crochet blanket hanging over the back. The bed is a queen size and has a checkered quilt that consumes the entire mattress. There is a tall wardrobe, dresser and a nightstand which are all dark wood. Kylee points out that in the Nightstand there is a locked drawer containing materials like toothpaste, hairspray, hand soap, a hairbrush and makeup. She explains to me that they are locked up because they can be dangerous to the residents when they are in a state of delusion.

      Outside Janet is passing a balloon with another staff member with a huge smile on her face. In the activities room some ladies were baking cookies and listening to music. The smell of freshly baked cookies was in the air. Kylee takes a plate of cookies and passes them out to the residents in the living room who are watching the three stooges and having a good time. "Its great because its not just a building its a home."