Research 

Facilitating Environmental Enrichment in Senior Care Activities with Professional Development

Celia M. Ross, M.S., Doctorate studies in Public Health-Epidemiology, Walden University

Over half of long-term elderly nursing home residents suffer from depression during their first year living in the nursing home.  The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 supported decreasing pharmacologic agents in nursing homes with the goal of partially replacing them with nonpharmacologic interventions. As part of this effort, the culture change movement moves nursing homes away from the health care institutions model to a model that focuses on “person-centered homes offering long-term care services.” The activity departments of senior care facilities are the key to actualizing environmental enrichment and creating person-centered homes.  There is a need to understand how to better train activity professionals through professional development so that they can create more enriched environments for long-term elderly nursing home residents. This qualitative study will examine the views of Activity professionals concerning the role of professional development and continuing education in supporting their ability to care for long-term care residents. Volunteers will be recruited from among experienced Activity professionals who wish to tell their story about how they used something they have learned to better the lives of Residents. Narrative stories from recorded phone interviews will reveal portraits of a healthcare social type that will enrich our understanding of the benefits of professional development in long-term care. Results of this study may be published. This study will help promote social change by adding to the literature supporting the Activity profession in enriching the lives of Residents.