Video: Village where every resident has severe dementia

Very interesting, watch this CNN video on this amazing place. A small village in the Netherlands where every resident has severe dementia. 

CNN's Dr. Gupta travels to Hogewey.

YouTube: http://youtu.be/LwiOBlyWpko 

Good article in The Guardian on this wonderful place. http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/aug/27/dementia-village-residents-have-fun 

From Wikipedia... 

De Hogeweyk or Hogewey is a gated model village setting in Weesp, in The Netherlands. It is notable because it has been designed specifically as a pioneering care facility for elderly people with dementia. The major advances achieved by the approach of all-dayreminiscence therapy at Hogewey, compared to traditional nursing homes, is that the residents with dementia are more active and require less medication. The setting has been compared to that depicted in the film The Truman Show. Carers, doctors and nurses work around the clock to provide the 152 residents the necessary 24-hour care.

The Hogewey complex is set out like a village with a town square, supermarket, hairdressing salon, theatre, pub, café-restaurant—as well as the twenty-three houses themselves. Each house reflects a different style that is common to, and familiar for, the six or seven people who live in that house. The seven settings provided are Stedelijk, for those used to living in an urban city area, Goois, with anaristocratic Dutch feel, Ambachtelijk used to working as trades people or craftsmen/women, Indisch for those with an association with Indonesia and the former Dutch East Indies, Huiselijk for homemakers, Cultureel for those brought up with theater and cinema, and Christelijk for those with a central religious aspect to life, whether Christian or another religion.

The doctors, nurses and carers aim to make the experience as real as possible to the residents. Residents do the necessary shopping at the supermarket and assist with preparing and cooking as they would at home. The carers wear normal daytime clothing rather than clinical clothing, and fit into a role that the dementia suffers are likely to be comfortable with; in the working class households the carers are seen to be neighbors or carers, while in the aristocratic/upper class setting, the nurses act akin to servants. The different living styles have different types of music playing, significantly varied interior design, food and methods of table setting. Residents within each house have their own large bedroom and then meet with other residents to share the living room, kitchen and dining room. There are no locks on the doors and residents are free to mix and walk or cycle around within the village, including choosing to visit the supermarket or cafe, just as they would in the real world.

There are around 250 staff. In order to maintain the "fake reality" (hyperreality) that those living at Hogewey are comfortable with, the staff do not seek to correct the residents as the residents are talking about memories, background and history. At the same time, the staff will not deceive the patients if directly asked, truthfully stating that the residents are in a place where they can receive required care for their condition. Because of the nature of Alzheimer's disease and dementia, the suffers remember the distant past, rather than the present, so even truthful answers given by the staff will be forgotten quickly. 

Starlight Caregivers