55 Art Projects for Dementia Care
Heather was in a happy mood today. She was receptive to a walk around the corner and a stroll in the back garden. It marked a promising start to the day.While it had been a month since Heather was willing to even look at art materials, I decided test the waters. I handed Heather a Read More
A new report released by the Alzheimer Society of Canada on January 22, 2024, highlights the diversity of people living with dementia in Canada. Read report here: Landmark Study Report
July 13, 2023 UCSF-led research reveals brain changes that promote visual creativity.For decades, doctors have noticed a rare burst of visual creativity that occurs among a small number of patients with dementia, echoing the same strange phenomenon among patients who have had a stroke or other brain injury. Now, a collaboration of 27 scientists led Read More
Leaving aside questions about effectiveness, the discussion so far highlights five good reasons to support the arts for people with dementia: Full article here: The Arts as a Medium for Care and Self-Care in Dementia: Arguments and Evidence – PMC (nih.gov)
The Transformative Power of Art as a Therapy for Dementia Patients (voisefoundation.org)
It’s been quite a while since I last shared anything. Over the past several months, I’ve regularly offered art supplies to Heather, hoping to coax her into joining me in drawing, painting, or even just coloring. Regrettably, I couldn’t seem to spark her interest in any form of artistic expression. But I wasn’t ready to Read More
Heather has started layering colours in her art. This is a new phenomenon as she was previously very careful to not mix or blend colours on her canvas. In this piece of art, Heather began by making a yellow circle with a marker. She then drew additional circles within the yellow one, sometimes covering an Read More
I got to spend the evening with Heather while John attended the 30th anniversary celebration of the Samba Nova | Community percussion band in Halifax, NS in which he has been a member for many years. I brought art supplies, and we enjoyed a relaxing time painting together. It started with just a few drops Read More
I’ve discovered that Heather is most comfortable when painting with liquid watercolors. Although she may struggle with opening the bottles or knowing what to do once they’re open, I’ve noticed that if I drop a few splashes of paint onto the paper, she immediately starts painting. Her painting reminds me of a sandwich and is Read More
• Report finds nearly 7 million older adults have Alzheimer’s dementia in the U.S. — one of the costliest conditions to society.• 70% of dementia caregivers report that coordinating care is stressful.• 60% of health care workers surveyed believe the U.S. health care system is not effectively helping patients and their families navigate dementia care. Read More
