Alzheimer’s Care for a Life-Long Gardener
Alzheimer’s care is a key area of expertise for Keturah Rothermel, the housing manager at Arthur’s Residential Care on Alta Vista. She has over seven years’ experience providing physical and emotional support for people with a wide range of needs, and her focus is on helping each client make the most of each day. Here’s a glimpse of Alzheimer’s care at Arthur’s through Keturah’s eyes.
Keturah Rothermel
“One thing that I love about working at Arthur’s is finding those little things that have a significant impact on our clients. Whether its finding something that brings back some memories, or something that brings them pure joy, that moment of clarity and happiness is priceless.
I had one of these moments not so long ago with a client of mine. She has been an avid gardener all her life, but her ability to pursue her interest was cut short by her Alzheimer’s. Since moving to Arthur’s, staff have struggled to find activities that she enjoys doing. She’s not a TV watcher, and she often gets too tired to sit up and participate in activities.”
Her Smile Said It All
“One day last week, however, we started re-potting some of our indoor plants. We asked this client if she’d like to help, and she timidly agreed. Staff helped her to the table where there was a philodendron that needed to be pruned back a bit. We gave her a scissors and away she went. She worked for at least an hour snipping away at the stems and cutting them into pieces that could be regrown into a new plant. All the while she was teaching staff about where to cut back the plant, how to care for the lone stems, and how to re-pot them. The smile on her face said it all: she was in her element.
It doesn’t seem like much but these little things go such a long way in Alzheimer’s care for our clients. Even if they forget about it shortly after, the joy felt in the moment is genuine. Any sense of normalcy that we can give back to our clients is absolutely worth it.”
Looking for Alzheimer’s Care Resources?
This is an example of everyday life at Arthur’s Residential Care. If you’d liked to discuss how Arthur’s might help your loved one, contact Deb Nygaard for a free, no obligation consultation. She can answer questions, connect you with Alzheimer’s care resources, and provide more information about Arthur’s Residential Care.