Senior Housing Provider, Ecumen, Offers Insight for Developing Behavioral Alzheimer’s Programs

New whitepaper looks at developing senior housing for behavioral Alzheimer’s and dementia care.

Shoreview, MN, April 15, 2009 --(PR.com)-- http://www.ecumen.org – Senior housing and services provider Ecumen has released a new whitepaper to help others develop senior housing for those living with the challenges of behavioral Alzheimer’s and dementia.

“10 Tips from Ecumen for Developing a Successful Behavioral Alzheimer's and Dementia Care Program for Senior Housing” is currently available for complimentary download by visiting The Library of Successful Aging on the Ecumen website. It was written by Ecumen team members Debbie Manthey, Director of Operations, and Janelle Meyers, Ecumen Housing Manager.

“Increasingly, senior housing professionals are seeing a subset of Alzheimer’s, when the affected person develops substantial and challenging behaviors,” write Manthey and Meyers in the whitepaper. “Many senior housing providers are forced to keep these residents heavily medicated or discharge them to a mental health hospital unit. At Ecumen, we sought to develop a better way to serve people experiencing such behaviors.”

The Ecumen whitepaper outlines lessons learned by Ecumen in the development of senior housing in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, to serve those living with the challenges of behavioral Alzheimer’s and dementia. Insights include:
• The importance of focusing on emotional intelligence in the hiring of team members
• Differences in regular memory care and behavioral Alzheimer’s and dementia care
• How to use existing resources to the advantage of those you serve and your team

“Behavioral Alzheimer’s care is not for the faint of heart,” state Manthey and Meyers in concluding their whitepaper. “However, no risk, no reward. Developing this specialized housing has been an incredibly rewarding experience. It has been a life changer.”

Visit “The Library of Successful Aging” on the Ecumen website to download a full copy of the whitepaper "10 Tips from Ecumen for Developing a Successful Behavioral Alzheimer's and Dementia Care Program for Senior Housing" by Debbie Manthey, Ecumen Director of Operations, and Ecumen Housing Manager Janelle Meyers.

http://www.ecumen.org/whitepaper.html#shd

About Ecumen:
Ecumen (www.ecumen.org) is based in Shoreview, Minn., and provides senior housing, services and senior housing development. Ecumen is the most innovative provider of senior housing and services, empowering individuals to live richer, fuller lives. Ecumen’s mission is to create "home" for older adults wherever they choose to live. Ecumen is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and has 4,000 team members. Ecumen writes about news and ideas that are shaping the future of aging services at its Changing Aging blog: http://www.ecumen.org/changing-aging/.

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Mike Yanke
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www.ecumen.org
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