Animal Assisted Therapy for people with Dementia. Kirsten Hartsoe RTH 370

Transcription

1 Animal Assisted Therapy for people with Dementia Kirsten Hartsoe RTH 370

2 Purpose The purpose from the client s perspective is to decrease the negative behaviors and symptoms that come with having dementia. To help improve quality of life by decreasing negative thoughts and actions. Dog therapy gives the client various benefits including relaxation, less apathy, agitation and aggression, and lowers blood pressure. (Williams, 2008)

3 Brief Description Dementia can bring out a lot of aggression and agitation when one is confused or unware of things they can t remember. Dog therapy helps a person s overall health which includes increasing task performances, recall memories, reducing negative behaviors and feeling and express positive emotions.

4 Staff Requirement CTRS, Staff members, and volunteers if short staffed have to have protocals set that indicate animal and patient safety. Up to date on shot records and health forms: dog and staff A Certified Animal Assisted Therapy dog.

5 Entrance Requirements One can independently refer themselves from word of mouth Being referred by a staff member, CTRS, nurse, or doctor if showing signs of dementia via agitation negative behaviors If any pre or post assessments show signs and symptoms of dementia.

6 Exit Requirements A client is not forced to finish the intervention and can stop at any time but encouraged. To complete this intervention, there needs to be a clear actions that the client is showing positive behaviors and feelings. Looking at post assessments with the intervention would help determine a change.

7 Group Size Minimum 3 Maximum 9 Ratio- 1:3

8 Duration The clients will attend once a week for 30 minutes for a month to help minimize negative behaviors and symptoms.

9 Safety Considerations Allergies Staffs and clients to be aware of their surroundings such as toys and the dog Hygiene Standards Educating clients on strange dog behavior prior and beware of biting Therapy Animal Abuse so the welfare of the animal is also safe To make sure the facility has a policy plan for injuries and bite protocols!

10 Facility and Equipment Nursing home setting, so having a large enough room to allow for transportation accessories Treats, dog combs, assortment of toys (atleast 9)

11 Methods CTRS will make sure the room is available and have had contact with other staff and volunteers. Makes sure all equipment is present. For the pre-assessment, clients will sit in a circle upon arrival, CTRS will have a rainbow of color cards to help clients generate a feeling. Explaining what mood each color indicates and the clients will pick a color pertaining to how they feel. Ex. Yellow= happy Red=angry Green= mellow/content Blue= sad

12 Methods cont. There are going to be three different activities being done with the dog as a group. The first activity is clients taking turns telling the dog a command and rewarding the dog with a treat if he listens. These are commands such as sit, lay, roll over, jump, bark, and stay. The second activity is clients taking turns brushing the dogs fur with a comb and petting it. The third activity is giving each client a different dog toy and allowing each client to play with the dog. Each activity will remain around 8 minutes

13 Methods Cont. After the three activities, clients will come back to the circle but this time with the dog present in the middle. This will lead us back into the color cards where the client will pick a color to reflect their current mood. After they have chosen their color, the CTRS will give back their color cards from the pre-assessment earlier and ask each client to go around the circle if they want to, discussing if their card color changed or not? And why? If this was for good or bad? And something they enjoyed about the session. After the post- assessment the staff will inform the clients they can leave and on the way out to drop their dog toy in a bin by the door and thanking them for their time.

14 Client Objectives and Outcomes By the end of this intervention their quality of life is suppose to be improved, such as lower blood pressure, less agitation, improvement of tasks, memory gain, and improvement to negative thoughts. After these sessions the clients will have a better understanding of how having a positive outlook affects your actions and notice less aggression amongst themselves and others.

15 References Definitions Development Task Force of the Standards Committee(1992). Generic terms and definitions. Handbook for animal-assisted activities and animal-assisted therapy Renton, WA: Delta Society, 48. International Association of Human Animal Interaction Organizations(1998). The IAHAIO Prague guidelines on animal assisted activities and animal assisted therapy. Renton, WA: Delta Society. Williams, E., & Jenkins, R. (2008). Dog visitation therapy in dementia care: a literature review. Nursing Older People, 20(8).

16