Locked gates for care home garden?

[PamD]

Another point: please try to make it so that staff will be happy for residents to go out into at least part of the garden at all times of day, unsupervised. We took Mother to one possible respite place (well, impossible because of this factor!), and they wouldn't let residents into the garden unless a staff member was there too (fair enough as it fronted onto a main road!). It would have been a prison for Mother, as she's used to being able to sit out with the sun on her face and enjoy fresh air whenever she wants to. Possibly a need to divide the garden into a sitting area close to the house, securely separated from the wider garden space if staff wouldn't be happy for all residents to have access to the whole garden unsupervised?

Difficult, isn't it, when residents will vary so much in their needs and their vulnerability.

Good luck with it, anyway! Pam

 

[phin]

Hi Pam,

I absolutely intend to do that. From all I've read on dementia, it seems that often people are dealt with by being "imprisoned" in some way, and that on top of the imprisoning aspect of the illness itself. I intend to make my garden a safe a haven as possible - the whole of it will be visible at any one time, meaning staff can see people wherever they are, and hopefully residents will be comfortable being outside on their own.

I have just decided on a theme for the planting, which is "childhood memories" - so plants that remind people of their childhood gardens through smell, colour, texture and so on. I'm off to the RHS library on Monday to research traditional varieties that will give the best results

Fiona

 

[jenniferpa]

I've thought of something else: you need to make sure any plants are non-toxic (someone may have mentioned this already). Some people with dementia do tend to put things in their mouths.

 

[Jancis]

Hi Pam,

I have just decided on a theme for the planting, which is "childhood memories" - so plants that remind people of their childhood gardens through smell, colour, texture and so on. I'm off to the RHS library on Monday to research traditional varieties that will give the best results

Fiona

That is a brilliant idea Fiona, we may also be able to help with this - may need another thread from you. There was a great thread on TP about old fashioned smells a month or so ago, old fashioned plants would be a super new thread. Perhaps try posting this in the Tea Room?

 

[MirandaT]

A few thoughts to add - mum's unit has a courtyard garden, surrounded on all sides by the building, with lots of climbing plants on the walls to break up the brickwork. Water features and windchimes, raised beds with smelly plants like lavender, and ladybirds and stuff on sticks around the beds as well. The best bit is that there is a main door from the lounge which is always open in warmer weather, but at the other end of the garden is another door back into another part of the home. So you can wander safely in a circle - along the corridor, through the dining room, throught the lounge, into the garden, back to the corridor. For people with limited mobility it makes a reasonable walk. Lots of seating areas in the garden too.
Two large raised beds are used by residents to grow tomatoes etc. in the summer. A lot of the bedrooms overlook the garden and we've put up bird feeders just outside my mum's window - she's constantly amazed by the birds and the naughty squirrels!

 

[danny]

Another idea.


http://www.atdementia.org.uk/produc...8&product_id=288&page=1&referer=productSearch[d]asp[q]search[e]go[a]searchmethod[e]cats[a]cat_id[e]22[a]subcat_id[e]28[a]page[e]1

 

[TinaT]

My husband was called 'Houdini' because of his impossible escape from an extremely secure, well fenced and gated garden area. There was the smallest gap imaginable between the high iron gate and the high iron railings. Yes - he did manage to squeeze himself in between the two.

He arrived at the other side on a steep slope held up by a brick wall, fell off the wall and badly damaged his foot. I did post about this at the time it happened. It took weeks and weeks of pain before he was able to walk again.

Workmen came and inserted a metal sheet in between the gate and the railing to prevent this happening again.

Neither myself or the family could believe that he had got himself between the impossibly narrow opening to execute his escape!

It just goes to show how it is so important that every concievable safety issue is addressed. If he hadn't hurt his foot, far worse things could have happened to him.

xxTinaT

 

[blossom one]

Hi there,

My Dad has just spent a few months being assessed on a secure unit as he kept leaving his care home. I have to say that I didn't know such places existed until it was needed, the whole hospital ward was built around a lovely courtyard garden filled with benches and some shrubs. On nice days the doors were always open, it was perfectly safe and I think for him the freedom of being able to go outside whenever he wanted made up for the lack of freedom that he had but didn't appear to be that way (if you understand what i mean). Also once the winter months arrived it was still possible to walk around the garden as you could see it from all the corridors. There hopefully should be lots more places like this as it definately benefitted both staff and patients. _here's Hoping...