By Kristin Sullivan

When Elizabeth Davis was working as a social worker in a geriatric clinic at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in the late ‘80s, she was disturbed to learn how few options existed for low and middle income seniors who couldn’t live independently any longer.

“Many were being forced prematurely into nursing homes or living in less than adequate boarding homes, in conditions that were sometimes shocking,” Davis says.

So she took matters into her own hands and took over Bright Side Manor, which at the time was a residential health care facility in Teaneck, N.J. Now, Bright Side Manor operates under the umbrella of Davis’s 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Geriatric Services, Inc., and she’s able to provide a safe, homelike assisted living facility to residents who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford such care. Eighty-six percent of her residents are considered low- or moderate-income.
 
“We carried out extensive renovations, became a Medicaid provider and are happy that we can assist older adults regardless of their resources,” Davis says. “Few other facilities in New Jersey will accept Medicaid residents, so these folks are forced to live without the care they need or are pushed into nursing homes. . .   So an older adult who has worked his or her whole life, contributing to family and community, will find that unless they have at least $160,000 in the bank, they can’t access assisted living.

“Most of my residents, the majority of whom would be considered ‘middle class,’ would not be in assisted living if it weren’t for Bright Side,” Davis continues. “They would be living in unsafe situations, vulnerable to neglect or abuse, or prematurely placed in nursing homes.”

Bright Side’s residents include retired nurses, a Holocaust survivor, a pianist and a sociologist who spent much of his career in Indonesia and Central America, Davis says. In the past, they even had a jazz drummer who played with the likes of Billie Holiday and Tony Bennett and provided a rhythm section for a makeshift “band” Davis has put together, comprised of residents who enjoy singing oldies music. Frequently, a group gathers to sing classics such as “Build Me Up Buttercup” and “Mustang Sally.”

“When I want to get away from my desk and the pressures of running a facility on a shoestring budget, I go find a group of residents, put on some lively music and we have a blast!” Davis says. “It reminds me of why Bright Side is worth all the effort it takes.  I’ve been doing it now for at least three or four years and we usually gather a crowd of eight to ten who sing and others who listen and applaud!”

Bright Side is funded through resident fees, Medicaid reimbursements and grants, contributions and fundraising, Davis says.

“Resident fees and Medicaid don’t cover our operating costs so we do need support from our community,” she says. “In this economy, raising private donations is increasingly challenging.  The public needs to know, however, that contributions to a place like Bright Side have a direct and significant impact on our residents and their environment.”

For more information on Bright Side Manor, please visit their website.

By Kristin Sullivan

At Gurwin Jewish Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, a 460-bed facility in Commack, N.Y., residents are engaging in an interesting pastime that counts as therapy too: Drumming.

“The philosophy of the therapeutic recreation department includes the statement, ‘If it’s happening in the world, it’s happening here!’” explains Karen Nash, Gurwin’s director of therapeutic recreation. “Drumming Circles have been around for many years but rarely have been offered in the long term care setting.  The pilot program was very successful and we have been fortunate to have, as our consultant, a very prestigious facilitator.”

The circle usually includes 10 to 20 residents who gather around leader Edwina Lee Tyler. As Tyler begin to play her drum, residents join in, keeping rhythm on tom toms, maracas, or other percussion instruments.

It’s not just a joyful noise, though, Nash points out; the drum circle has numerous therapeutic benefits.

“When someone is involved in a joyful experience, endorphins are released in our body,” Nash says. “Endorphins contribute to the feelings of joy and enthusiasm.  Holding a drumstick, cymbal, shaker or tambourine enhances fine and gross motor skills.

“Drumming has been the communication tool since the beginning of man,” Nash adds. “The drum is the heartbeat. It takes our minds away from worrying about our health to a meditative state of rhythmic balance.”

For more information on Gurwin Jewish Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, please visit their website.

By Kristin Sullivan

At Miami Jewish Health Systems, South Florida’s largest provider of eldercare, the center for memory disorders is headed up by Dr. Marc Agronin, an expert in geriatric psychiatry, who believes that creativity and humor can outlive memory loss and can help restore meaning to patients’ lives.

Along those lines, Agronin is working to help restore meaning to memory care patients’ lives through a variety of techniques.

“While creativity and humor are enhanced by memory, neither skill is completely dependent upon it,” Agronin explains. “Individuals with advanced Alzheimer’s disease still retain sensory awareness and the ability to recognize and resonate with smiles and laughter, which serve as the basis for creativity and humor.”

“I will give you two examples,” Agronin continues. “We have sponsored an art therapist who is able to work with severely impaired individuals to create wonderfully colorful and inspiring paintings – works of art that we never would have imagined could emerge from their current states. Second, if you witness the daily interactions between a loving caregiver and someone with Alzheimer’s disease you will see how smiling is infectious, and brings a feeling of acceptance, warmth and fun to all involved.”

In addition, Miami Jewish Health System’s therapeutic programming department and memory center sponsor a variety of art, music and pet therapies, as well as two outpatient programs that address a spectrum of memory impairment levels.

“At the end of the day, however, it is the warmth and dedication of the staff that best re-awakens humor and creativity in the attendees,” Agronin says. “On a physiological level, meaningful activity and laughter promotes muscle relaxation and an overall state of calm through the parasympathetic nervous system, as well as the release of endorphins in the brain and decreases in stress hormones. The end result is a greater sense of well-being coupled with decreases in levels of anxiety and agitation. It also provides mental stimulation to promote attention, awakeness, sensory awareness, and to optimize orientation and socialization.”

Says Agronin, the author of Alzheimer Disease and Other Dementias: A Practical Guide, “We must never give up on individuals regardless of their place in life or just because they are old or diseased. We must involve our children and grandchildren in the process. In doing so we send a very powerful message that everyone has value and history that we must recognize and cherish. When you approach individuals suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease with such a spirit, it is amazing what is possible.”

For more information on Miami Jewish Health Systems, please visit their website.