After several weeks of orientation with staff, the author, a registered dance therapist, established a movement therapy group for long-term geriatric patients in a convalescent home. The purpose was to promote socialization and expression of feelings, partly by recognizing even the most minimal participation in the group. Many patients were severely depressed and disoriented; most were in wheel chairs. Three months later a second group, functioning at a higher level, was formed. During the first six months, patients showed increases in verbalization and spontaneous expression of feelings, in interaction, and in assertiveness.

Aged↗

PubMed1975

Integrating dance therapy into treatment.

For several years after dance therapy was introduced at Yale Psychiatric Institute in 1967, patients perceived it as an activity totally separate from their treatment program. The author describes changes in hospital procedure and in the structure of the dance groups that helped alter that perception. They include involving the patient's treatment team in the selection of activities; establishing groups in which membership is fairly constant, thus increasing the likelihood of interpersonal interaction; and setting aside ten or 15 minutes at the end of each dance session for discussion of the feelings evoked. The author says the changes have clarified values and goals within the dance therapy groups.

Connecticut↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The social re-engagement model for treating Alzheimer's disease.

By creating a completely new social structure shaped in response to the Alzheimer resident's perceived reality, nursing homes can provide an environment in which the individual can develop a new sense of identity.

Alzheimer Disease↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Nursing staff attitudes toward the work environment in a skilled nursing facility.

This study examines the attitudes of nursing staff toward their work environment in one long-term-care facility. It was conducted in response to differences noted in job performance between two staff subgroups assigned to different work stations, a phenomenon not uncommon in institutions that are divided into wings, floors, or other subgroups. Through analysis of questionnaire responses and patient-care data, the authors identified an intragroup conflict between two subgroups of nursing aides that appeared to be a cause of low morale among one group of aides. The authors suggest several management strategies that could effectively improve morale and job performance. Most human-service and health professions have been primarily client- or patient-centered, particularly the nursing profession in which the majority of literature and research focuses on improving patient care. Less attention has been given to the stresses experienced by care-givers in health settings, and their potential effects on job performance. Issues such as burnout, stress-related illnesses, morale building, and new management approaches in long-term care only recently have been addressed. In a series of studies about the burnout syndrome in child care and mental health workers, it was noted that several institutional and personal variables affected people's attitudes toward their work, the institution, and patients. For example, when work relationships were good, staff members reported more positive feelings about their jobs. Other institutional variables relevant to long-term care included work schedules, work-sharing, degree of power or influence in decision-making, and feedback about job performance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Humans↗