Dementia-Friendly Activities

At Rubislaw Park, we are proud to offer comprehensive dementia care for older adults living with dementia.

We believe that everyone should live a happy and meaningful life, no matter what medical condition or cognitive skills someone might have. We ensure that our residents who are in the early stages or the later stages of dementia are engaged in a number of activities, supported by our dementia care staff.

Planning activities helps to reduce symptoms and negative emotions associated with dementia such as anxiety, agitation, frustration, and depression. Keep reading to find out more about the dementia-friendly activities we offer at Rubislaw Park Care Home.

Creating a Keep-Sake Boxes

Reliving past memories is nostalgic for anyone, especially as we grow older. Remembering the past doesn’t have to be a sad experience, it’s about celebrating life by remembering all you have achieved. 

Dementia tends to affect the short-term memory of a person as opposed to the long-term, therefore residents living with the condition often remember times of their lives from decades ago, but may not remember what they did yesterday. 

Creating a memory box is a stimulating activity for people living with dementia. We invite friends and family into our home to bring in photo albums and personal items if a resident doesn’t already have these amongst their personal belongings, in order to create a wonderful box that they can cherish and keep in their bedroom. We enjoy hearing residents tell personal stories about when they were younger as photos tend to help unlock memories.

Helping around Our Home

Believe it or not, “chores” can help to stimulate a person's cognitive abilities. Not only does it keep a resident focused, but it's a comforting task as household activities are something that many of us would have carried out independently in the past. Tasks such as folding hand towels and washing up plastic dishes are effortless chores that can be done without much supervision or help. 

By allowing a resident to carry out everyday tasks which are considered “normal”, means they can feel relaxed and do something that comes naturally to them.

Gardening

Not only does participating in outside activities do wonders for our mental health, but doing an activity such as gardening brings a sense of independence and responsibility. Regular Vitamin D also has many health benefits so spending time outside to enjoy the wonderful surroundings is heavily encouraged, especially when the sun is shining. 

Gardening can be done in a group setting or alone, but our staff are always there to guide residents as well as keep them company in their endeavours. We believe it’s rewarding for residents to see the flowers or plants they have planted in all their glory every time they step outside.

Playing Board Games

Another dementia friendly activity we do with our residents is playing board games. We believe that playing games is a great way to get residents together, as it allows them to get to know fellow residents which is one of the many benefits of assisted living, it also keeps their problem-solving brain ticking over (plus it’s great fun). 

We have an ever-growing collection of games here at Rubislaw Park but just a few of them include chess, dominos, jigsaw puzzles, jenga, and scrabble. Residents can spend hours playing board games with one another and this activity never fails to put a smile on their faces - even the staff insist on joining in.

Reading

Reading is a mentally stimulating activity, and considering the stage of dementia, we believe that reading is extremely beneficial for those with dementia. Whether it be a book, a newspaper or magazine, just a few minutes a day of reading a news story, or a chapter of a novel can help with one’s memory. 

Residents can spend as long as they need to and if they don't want to continue reading a book, that’s completely fine too. If our residents prefer to be read to or find it hard to focus, our staff can read to our residents as this enables them to use their imagination and uncover memories of relatable moments in their life.

Getting Out and About

We encourage all residents, including those at all different stages of dementia to be as active as possible to help improve their quality of life; whether that’s taking a stroll around the gardens or going further afield to partake in some outdoor activities, we believe physical activity, no matter how extensive, is important for everyone. We often take our residents to the local town to do a number of excursions, and we have found that getting out and about and feeling part of the community significantly improves overall well being. 

Friends and family are also invited to come along if they would like. Outside activities could include feeding the birds at a park or going to a local café for tea and cake, whatever it is, we promise our residents will have a great time.

Dancing

Dancing is another fantastic dementia friendly activity for our residents. Whether you’re good at it or not, dancing is sure to provide a feel-good factor regardless. Dancing is not only a great way to get the body moving, but learning dance moves also uses the person's cognitive function in order to follow steps and remember a routine all while listening to music. This type of activity is a must when it comes to involving our residents with dementia as it has so many physical, mental and emotional benefits.

Residents have the opportunity to experience social interaction by dancing in a group or as a pair, and some residents may find that a certain type of dance brings them back to their younger days which is a wonderful moment to revisit.

Arts & Crafts

Arts and crafts are creative activities that are usually held in a social setting. Painting, drawing, modeling clay, origami and flower arranging are just a few examples of the engaging activities that older adults can take part in. Arts and crafts sessions allow residents with dementia to become engrossed in a fun-filled activity and partake in self expression. It's one of the sensory activities that enables residents to be stimulated through their use of touch and smell.

It enables them to be creative and imaginative, whilst socialising with others on the same project. From painting scenes in the garden to building sculptures with play dough, there is something different for everyone to enjoy. Residents love to see how their masterpieces turn out and often keep them on display in their rooms or give them to loved ones. 

Our staff is always there to lend a helping hand with our arts and crafts if needed, but we want to give our residents as much creative freedom as possible.

Music

Music is another activity that can bring an individual back to a particular time in their life. Residents in the past have enjoyed performances from singers, choirs and bands and it’s wonderful to watch residents sing along to songs of their past and witness the elevation of everyone’s mood. We even have our very own Edelweiss Choir run by our Dementia Unit Team Leader, Susan Gray. The choir group meets every Tuesday, and gives residents the perfect opportunity to enjoy music and spend time singing together. 

We believe it is important to incorporate music into our home for those with dementia as it improves attention, cognitive function, speech, memory and communication skills and can provide sensory stimulation.

We are thrilled to be able to provide an inclusive activities programme as our mission is to better the overall well-being of everyone. Residents with dementia shouldn’t stop enjoying the simple things in life just because they live in a nursing home, that’s why our staff works hard to provide appropriate care and support to improve their quality of life each and every day. 

At Rubislaw Park, we encourage residents to spend quality time with family members, to create cherished moments together. Our activities programme held daily aims to provide new experiences, social connections, improve cognitive health, improve wellbeing and reduce symptoms through meaningful activities.

If you are looking for a residential care home in Aberdeen on behalf of a family member living with Dementia, do not hesitate to get in touch with our helpful team to discuss Rubislaw Park Care Home’s available care options.