Webinar: Moving Home with Dementia
Dementia Australia webinars are free videos where subject experts discuss topics relating to dementia for a general audience.
The home environment is important for someone living with dementia. It can help them feel safe, comfortable, and as independent as possible. A home that is suitable to their needs can help them participate in everyday activities and navigate their surroundings.
In this webinar, Dementia Occupational Therapists Nerida Turner and Katerina Tsokas provide you with information to determine whether moving home with dementia is suitable for you.
You will learn about:
- deciding when and where to move, including how to plan for the anticipated move
- tips that you can consider for moving day, which will assist in reducing stress for all involved
- settling into your new home and what you can do to ease into this process.
Transcript
[Beginning of recorded material]
[Title card: Moving Home with Dementia. Dementia Australia.]
Nerida: Welcome to our webinar, Moving Home with Dementia. This webinar includes some helpful hints and ideas about moving home for anyone living with dementia, their families, or care partners. My name is Nerida, and I'm presenting with Katerina. We are both occupational therapists with experience in working with people living with dementia, their families, friends, and care partners. Our role in Dementia Australia is to support people living with changes in their memory and thinking to adjust their home to be more comfortable, safe, and engaging. This also includes supporting people who may be moving home. I'd like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today. I am joining you from the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, and Katerina is joining us from the land of the Kaurna people, and we pay our respects to Elders past and present, and to our shared futures.
Today, I'm going to talk about what to consider when you are deciding when or where to move, and how to plan for the move. And Katerina is going to share some tips for moving day, and how to settle into your new home. The decision to move home may be made over a long period of time, or there may be events that lead you to make the decision quickly. Staying in a familiar home and in your local community can support a person living with dementia to get around, do the activities that are meaningful or purposeful to them. However, there are many reasons why you may need or choose to move home. Some things you might consider when thinking about moving home are your safety in your current home. Do you feel safe? Are you able to do the things that are important to you in a safe way? And if not, are the safety issues able to be fixed or adjusted, or is moving to a new home going to be safer for you? Some people feel unsafe navigating steps using their appliances, or getting into and out of their shower, or some people feel insecure when they live away from family or friends who can support them, so these are reasons why they may move.
Cost is another factor in moving home. You might be thinking about the cost of living in your current home, and whether you can manage its size. Some people may have had a change in income and need to move, or they want to downsize as the house or garden is getting too large to manage. After a diagnosis of dementia, you may start thinking about how you want to live with dementia. You could think about how you would like to spend your time, and whether your current home supports you to remain independent, safe, and engaged in valued or purposeful activities. The decision to move is a big one, so you may like to talk to other people about it. Katerina, what are some tips when it comes to talking with others about moving home?
Katerina: Thanks, Nerida. Another part of moving home includes talking to the people that you live with about the move. It's important to talk with all people who will be living in the new home, including the person living with dementia. Encourage anyone who wants to be involved to ask any questions that they may have about the move, to express their preferences about a home, and to discuss suitable choices that are currently available. As part of this conversation, you might like to discuss and be honest about why moving home is a suitable option. Some people might want to discuss topics such as responsibilities, like who will help out with medical appointments and caregiving duties. Other possible topics may include identifying tip hazards, concerns with kitchen safety, or security. Some people may seek professional assistance in identifying and addressing these points to make the new home as safe as possible. Some professional help may include an occupational therapist a gas certified plumber, or a locksmith. Finally, allow everyone the chance to express their feelings and emotions about the move, so that they feel seen, heard, and valued. Let's now hear about looking for a new home from Nerida.
Nerida: Thanks, Katerina. When it comes to looking for a new home, whether or not you have definitely decided to move, you can still plan the home that will best suit your needs, and the way you'd like to live. Things you may like to consider are the location of your new home. Do you want to live in your current neighbourhood or are you moving to a new suburb, state, or country? What supports or services do you want to live near? Do you want to stay close to your current doctor, pharmacy, supermarket, or are you okay with finding new ones? And who do you currently live close to? You may have family or friends who support you from afar, and you'd like to move closer to them.
What type of home do you need or prefer? Some people prefer a home on one level with no steps or stairs. How many rooms will you need? This might depend on who you are going to be living with or whether you need a study or a spare room. What style of home is familiar to you? A person living with dementia may feel more at ease in a new home that is familiar to them. If you've always lived in cosy homes with all your belongings on show, you may not be comfortable or at ease in a modern, minimalistic home, with all your possessions hidden away.
What home can you afford to live in? Do some investigation into the cost of housing where you'd like to live. What can you afford and will that home support your needs? Or will there be costs to instal home modifications or renovate? What size home or garden can you maintain? Do you have the money and energy to renovate, or do you prefer a completed home? As Katerina mentioned, are there safety or security features that need installing? Some people look to see if potential homes already have grab rails, ramps, security systems, security lighting, door or gate locks, electricity or gas shutoff systems, hot water temperature limiters, smoke detectors, or CO2 monitors, whatever it is that you are needing. If you currently need grab rails or ramps, then you could consider getting them installed into your new home before you move in.
After you've chosen a home, you'll need to plan for your move. You may like to make a list of what is important to you and your cherished possessions. Make a plan of the new home and how your important things will fit into the new spaces. At this point, you might like to look at Dementia Australia's dementia-friendly home app, which has ideas about adjustments that you can make to a home to support a person living with dementia. Arrange the connection of the electricity, water and gas. Notify your change of address to government agencies, care agencies, medical services, insurance companies, and other important services. You can get quotes from removalist companies or transport companies if you need them to help you move.
If you have decided to have maintenance, safety modifications or home improvements made to your new home, you will need to get quotes and organise any trades during this time. If the noise or dust made by this work is likely to cause distress to anyone living in the home, you may like to consider setting the move in date to after the completion date of these works. Gather together your important documents and find a secure place to store them to avoid misplacing them during the move, such as birth certificates, passports, bank or tax documents, and any other valuable belonging. And finally, arrange respite for the person living with dementia if needed, on moving day or for the period of time while moving is happening.
Now, Katerina, what are some tips for moving day?
Katerina: The following are some tips that may help you on moving day. Firstly, it is important to keep to your routine as much as possible. So, for example, eating at certain times, eating the food you would usually like, and taking part in your favourite activities. This provides a sense of normalcy, which then provides a sense of comfort, and these things decrease stress and anxiety. Schedule the move at a time of day when the person living with dementia is at their best. So this includes concentration, interaction, and energy. For example, some people plan a move later in the day if they're not an early riser, but on the other hand, some people experience sundowning, so avoiding late afternoon moves will minimise confusion and anxiousness.
On moving day, talk about what is going to happen and what has happened. This will help in understanding why the day is so busy, the extra noise or people that may be around. Being included and informed during the process of moving, assist in feeling valued, which contributes to wellbeing. Finally, take some time out and rest in a quiet space throughout the day in order to conserve and maintain energy levels to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
After the move is complete, you may like to consider these tips to create an enabling home. An enabling home helps a person living with dementia to live a full and independent a life as possible. Firstly, setting the new home up in a similar way to the previous home will assist with orientation, as things will look familiar. Set up the environment to stimulate and support participation in valued activity. This may include ensuring that spaces are free of clutter and that items required for activities or tasks that you enjoy participating in are easy to find.
Finally, consider environmental aids such as lighting, signage, and labels to assist in wayfinding and locating items. Nerida, can you tell us more about how to create a familiar home?
Nerida: To create a familiar home, try to set up the new home to accommodate your previous routines. Include your cherished personal objects or anything that gives you a sense of familiarity, stability, or comfort. Place your furniture in a way that supports your automatic patterns of movement. So perhaps you always sleep on the right side of the bed, and the toilet was located next to your side of the bed, so try to replicate this in your new home. If you can't, then you will need to set up some cues to help you reorientate, such as installing some night lights, or putting a sign up to show you the new way. Some people bring their favourite armchair, blanket, plants, photos, or other cherished items, and display them throughout their home. Other ideas are to paint or re-carpet with a familiar colour scheme, or change the window coverings to a familiar choice that is easy to use.
The outdoor areas can also be adjusted with familiar items to your garden, such as a bird bath, or a bench seat. Choose a place in your home where you can spend time doing the hobbies, interests, and purposeful activities that you enjoy. If you are resuming past hobbies, try to set the home in a similar way that you had before. And if you are looking for new activities, you could explore activities that stimulate our five senses: touch, taste, smell, hear, see, such as music, painting, gardening, or polishing furniture. What a familiar home looks like is going to be different for everyone, and it will evolve over time as you start living in your new home.
Katerina is now going to talk about how best to settle into your new home.
Katerina: Settling into the new home may take some time for the person living with dementia as they need to adjust to their new surroundings, and any potential new layout aspects to the home, that do not replicate that of their familiar environment. This might result in asking to leave the new home, but keeping a routine, ensuring comfort and engagement in activities of meaning and purpose can assist with this as you settle in. Finally, reaching out and linking to your community can support your wellbeing now and into the future. Some people get to know their new neighbours. They join social groups or exercise groups, and get out and about to find their local shops, GP and pharmacy.
So, to put all of this theory together, we have come up with an example of a case study, and this couple is Morgan and Ashley. They have decided to move home, and this talks about how they prepared for moving day, and settling into their new home. Morgan and Ashley have decided to move out of their family home that they have shared for the past 20 years. Morgan was diagnosed two years ago with dementia. Morgan and Ashley live in a two-storey home, and Morgan has recently been having some difficulties managing the stairs. All the bedrooms and main bathrooms are upstairs, and the kitchen, living room, and laundry are downstairs.
They have a daughter and grandchildren that live half an hour away. Morgan and Ashley put in a lot of thought into the decision of moving home. They researched the costs of installing a stair lift, or modifying the living room into a bedroom and ensuite. However, they realised the cost of a stair lift and the noise of construction did not suit their needs. Morgan was initially really upset about the prospect of moving home. However, after discussions with Ashley, their daughter, and grandchildren, Morgan was willing to look at new homes in order to plan for the future. Morgan and Ashley wanted to find a home that was on a level block, within 10 minutes of their daughter, and with an ensuite bathroom.
They managed to find a home that fit these criteria, and as a bonus, the yard is easy to maintain. This would allow Morgan and Ashley to plant a veggie garden, which is something that they've always enjoyed, but the size of the lawn is not too much to maintain. Morgan and Ashley made a list of all the important personal belongings that make home feel comfortable and safe. Morgan chose to bring tools for gardening, a favourite recliner chair, and a framed photo of them both from the lounge room.
On the day of the move, Morgan and Ashley decided to move in the morning as Morgan has the most energy earlier in the day. Morgan also decided to be present on moving day, therefore, Ashley did not consider respite options. Ashley had given the removalists clear instructions for where to place Morgan's recliner chair, and to place Morgan's side of the bed closest to the ensuite door. Ashley's daughter bought some nightlights to place in the ensuite, a sign for the ensuite door and labels for where to find cutlery, plates, and cups in the kitchen.
After living in their new home for two weeks, Morgan and Ashley are starting to display more of their cherished belongings that make home feel familiar. They have plans to start their veggie garden after taking the time to settle in. So, in summary, today, we have covered thinking about and deciding when and where to move. Talking with everyone involved in the move, and encouraging the expression of their thoughts and feelings, planning for moving day, including keeping to familiar routines, the time of day for moving, and scheduling rest breaks.
And we've spoken about creating a familiar environment, and how this involves setting up the home layout, displaying personal objects, sticking to a familiar routine, and engaging in activities that bring meaning and purpose. Finally, we've covered that it's important to allow plenty of time to settle in.
If you would like more information on moving homes with dementia, please contact the National Dementia Helpline on 1800 100 500. Nerida and I would like to thank you for joining us today.
[Title card: No matter how you are impacted by dementia or who you are, we are here for you.]
[Title card: Dementia Australia. National Dementia Helpline 1800 100 500. Dementia.org.au]
[END of recorded material]
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