Clinical Insights: Person-centered dementia care with the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair
We recently spent time with Mary Anne Uayan, BSN, RN, CCRN, CWCA, Arjo Clinical Consultant - Wound Care, to discuss the advantages of the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair. Mary Anne has been a nurse for over 23 years, is certified in adult critical care and wound care, and has extensive experience as a wound care champion during those years. She initially joined Arjo’s Critical Care team as a Clinical Consultant for critical care therapies and now is an integral part of the Wound Care team.
What is Dementia?
Dementia is defined as an “usually progressive condition (such as Alzheimer's disease) marked by the development of multiple cognitive deficits (such as memory impairment, aphasia, and the inability to plan and initiate complex behavior).”1 It is a disorder of the brain in which a person experiences decreasing cognitive abilities that often cause inability to process and retain new information.2 Dementia is typically diagnosed when acquired cognitive impairment has become severe enough to compromise social and/or occupational functioning.3
Creating a foundation of support that allows one to focus on a person-centered approach to care is key to enhancing quality of life for a person living with dementia.
What is the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair?
The fully-automated Wellness Nordic Relax Chair is a dementia care solution that combines music, tactile stimulation and rocking motion to offer a unique and calming multi-sensory experience, commonly used to help those with cognitive disorders.
Why is music important to residents with dementia?
Music has many health benefits. Music is said to be the language of one’s feelings and emotions. It soothes, energizes and inspires. Music gives the power to heal. It helps improve understanding, behavior, mood and communication, thus improving the person’s overall sense of well-being.
As clinicians, what observations may residents manifest after using the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair?
In my personal use of the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair, many residents showed improvement in their mood. Residents were more cooperative and responsive to therapies and rarely showed emotional outbursts. Since most residents who suffer from dementia are elderly, they also showed an uptake in their cognitive and psychological ability. Helping people with cognitive disorders relax through soothing music and tactile stimulation can have a beneficial effect on their well-being and quality of life.
To gain additional clinical insight into the Wellness Nordic Relax Chair and other dementia care solutions, visit Arjo or contact your local sales representative.
References:
- Dementia Bytes. https://www.dementiabytes.com/.
- Arvanitakis Z, Shah RC, Bennett DA. Diagnosis and Management of Dementia: Review. JAMA. 2019;322(16):1589-1599.
- Hugo J, Ganguli M. Dementia and cognitive impairment: epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment. Clin Geriatr Med. 2014;30(3):421-442.