Long Term Care and Quality of Life Cathy Auerbach, Amanda Dam, Danica Croucher, Alexis Seaman, Sandeep Marwaha, Daniel Zimmerman, Jennifer Holmes

Topic Recent research on services provided in licensed nursing homes in three regions in Ontario indicates that most residents experience optimal health but endure a low quality of life. Your response to this research provides an explanation for nursing home residents’ quality of life through an occupational analysis of their daily routines

Introduction Scope 1) Relevance 2) Position statement 3) Definition of quality of life 4) Policy 5) Nursing home routines 6) Problems/Solutions 7) Facilitated discussion

Introduction (Cont…) Relevance to Audience “Yesterday’s child is today’s adult and tomorrow’s grandmother or grandfather” As future Occupational Therapists Better understanding of QofL  enable and advocate for change

Position Statement Residents have a low quality of life because their daily routines are based on a model that does not fully incorporate the QofL concepts that residents deem important, which are necessary to ensure mental and social well-being

Definition of Quality of Life “Choosing and participating in occupations that foster hope, generate motivation, offer meaning and satisfaction, create a driving vision of life, promote health, enable empowerment…” (CAOT, 2002, p. 182)

How do Older Adults define Q of L? From Ball et al. (2000), Bryant et al. (2004), and Sparks et al. (2004) Independence/Individuality Autonomy/perceived control Social interaction Meaningful activities Care from staff Health All enable occupations or are occupations

Policy Policy is very important because it determines how we, our children, and our grandchildren experience older life Nursing Home Act “Regulation 832” “Active Aging” – the process of optimizing opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age

Nursing Home Routines Self-care Productivity Leisure The Empire Living Centre – North Bay, ON Leisureworld – North Bay, ON Preircy Manor – Dear Lake, NL Belvadere Heights – Parry Sound, ON Shalom Manor – Grimsby, ON Albright Manor – Beamsville, ON Maynard Nursing Home – Toronto, ON

Problems and Solutions Lack of autonomy Lack of individuality Lack of meaningful activities Lack of independence Lack of relationships

Occupational Concepts Occupational deprivation: A state of prolonged preclusion from engagement in occupations of necessity or meaning due to factors outside the control of the individual Occupational Alienation: Experiences of meaninglessness or purposelessness, a sense of isolation, powerlessness, frustration, loss of control or estrangement from the self or society which results from engaging in occupations that do not satisfy inner needs

Summary Older people want recognition- for what they can do mentally and manually, for their capacity to make a contribution to their community, country and world, for social and political consciousness, and their ability to plan for themselves. Older people want response: to be liked for who they are, to hold friends and to make new acquaintances. And, older people want to continue to grow and to learn and to develop. They need freedom, dignity and respect.

Conclusion To deal with the issues prevalent in nursing homes, we need to: 1)develop a clear and holistic definition of quality of life for seniors 2)advocate for older adults 3)create programs that reflect what residents want to do

Facilitated Discussion From your personal experiences can you identify any issues with daily routines in nursing homes that may lead to low QofL What is our role as future OTs?