Above and Beyond: A senior living facility that goes above and beyond to
provide residents with the best care possible.
Erin West; Jenna Wills; Angela Boccuti; and Morgan Jones
Facility description
• Above and Beyond Senior Living is a long-term care facility that provides
assistance and care to people who are no longer able to live independently. We
provide residents with a comfortable, friendly, and inviting environment. We
offer many different activities in group therapy sessions that work on increasing
our residents’ functional abilities and independence. Our caring staff is
comprised of recreational therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapists,
and registered nurses that function as an inter-disciplinary team of health
professionals dedicated to increasing residents’ well-being.
Recreational Therapy
Name that Tune
•
The RT plays a vital role in maximizing clients’ independence and overall wellbeing.
They are responsible for finding out what the clients’ interests are and incorporating
those interests into group activities.
•
Recreational therapists are certified to work with people with all types of impairments.
Common impairments in clients at our facility include dementia, Alzheimer's, arthritis,
balance disorders, emphysema, and glaucoma.
•
Each patient receives an individual evaluation when they enter the facility. A
recreational therapist assesses physical and cognitive abilities to determine each clients
strengths and weaknesses. This is important in developing a treatment plan with a goal
of maximizing independence. A vital part of assessment is discussing the patient’s
interests and hobbies to create and place them in group activities that they are
genuinely interested in. Clients attend up to four group activities each day with the
goal of increasing functional abilities. Increased independence is achieved through
activities that exercise the mind and body such as tai chi, cooking, and name that tune.
Each client has a monthly evaluation that assesses program effectiveness by
determining whether patients have improved, remained the same, or regressed in there
functional abilities.
•
At our facility, we provide clients with a wide range of activities. We have activities
that promote cognitive functioning such as history and science classes, blackjack, 20
questions, and dominoes. We also offer group exercise classes such as tai chi and yoga
that promote physical wellbeing. Sensory stimulation is a very important part of daily
life as well. For this reason we have therapy animals visit the facility on the weekends.
The animals stimulate the senses and are often a great gateway to conversation and
reminiscence among residents. Frequent happy hours and dance nights promote social
interaction and help our residents to form friendships.
• Phone: 555-788-2755
• Website: https://www.above&beyondseniorliving.com/home
Clients
• The typical age of clients in this nursing home is 65 and over. The length of stay
is long term therefore most of the residents are there permanently. Some of the
most prevalent diagnoses in this nursing home include dementia, arthritis,
balance disorders, emphysema, and glaucoma. Most of the clients are typical
elderly individuals dealing with the effects of aging.
• Name that Tune is a music recognition activity in which the residents try to
identify the short, catchy tunes a recreation therapist plays, such as “Take Me
Out to the Ball Game.” This game is often played to avoid having the residents
spend too much time in front of a TV or alone in their rooms. The purpose of
Name that Tune is to stimulate the minds of the residents and provide a healthy
challenge for their memories and hearing abilities. Recreation therapists can use
this game to assess whether a resident is experiencing hearing loss or trouble
remembering common concepts. A recreational therapist should make sure to
not continue with the activity if a resident is having trouble remembering the
song title or hearing the music because this may create a lack of confidence or
sense of failure. It is important to focus on the residents’ strengths, not
weaknesses.
Pet Therapy
• Animal-assisted therapy, also known as pet therapy, is offered on the weekends
for all residents who choose to participate. It utilizes trained animals and
handlers to achieve specific physical, social, cognitive, and emotional goals with
patients. Pet therapy serves many purposes such as physical fitness through
walking with the animals; fine motor skills enhanced by petting, grooming, or
feeding the animal; patient communication is encouraged by the response of the
animal to either verbal or physical commands; and activities such as writing or
talking about the therapy animals or past pets also develop cognitive skills and
communication. Pet therapy provides a great way for recreation therapist to
evaluate major differences in the patient's comfort, progress, and recovery. In
using pet therapy, a recreation therapist should consider the physical abilities of
the residents, as well as the emotional attachments they might form in case the
pet were to die, which could be a traumatic experience.
Treatment Approach
Recreational Therapy Interventions
References
• Here at Above and Beyond we provide goal directed group therapy to
individuals 55+. Our main goal is to improve quality of life through social
interaction, leisure, and participation in group activities.
Bingo
Robertson, T; Long, T; 2008; Foundations of Therapeutic Recreation; United
• Therapy is provided in a newly renovated activity room, fully equipped with
various board games, exercise equipment, arts and crafts supplies, and a fully
functional kitchen.
• Most of our clients come from a home setting or an inpatient rehab facility
when they are no longer able to live independently. Our clients come to our
facility when they are in need of additional support and generally stay for the
remainder of their life.
• Our treatment team consists of recreational therapists, physical therapists,
occupational therapists, and registered nurses. Each health professional works
together to increase clients’ independence by enhancing physical, cognitive, and
social wellbeing.
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Recreational Therapy Interventions
• Bingo, a game in which players mark off numbers on cards as the numbers are
drawn randomly by a caller, is offered on Friday evenings. Although an optional
event, we highly encourage everyone to take part in this fun opportunity to liven
up the weekend! Family and friends of the residents are always welcome to join
and prizes are awarded to all of the winners! Winners are those first to mark off
five numbers in a row or another required pattern.
• Bingo is a great way for people who live in the nursing home to socialize with
each other and stimulate their minds. It is an especially effective therapeutic
intervention for those residents with dementia or Alzheimer’s. Bingo allows
recreation therapists to assess cognitive and memory skills by observing how
well the residents can follow the rules and remain focused on the specific task.
Recreation therapists should consider whether the game should be shortened or
if adaptations, such as using large cards or markers, need to be made.
States of America: Thompson-Shore, Inc.
Vargas, G. (2013). APIE Lecture message posted to
https://blackboard.temple.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=nu
ll&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse
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Vargas, G. (2013). Long Term Care posted to
https://blackboard.temple.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=nu
ll&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse
%26id%3D_5417_1%26url%3D