Reminiscing: How to Create a Memory Board

i'm going to start this this week!

At our Day Center for seniors we decided one year to give them each an individual memory frame. We asked them questions about their past, their pastimes, their favorite things , then we asked them to bring old pictures of themselves that we scanned and later on printed, we also found images pertinent to their comments and made them each their own memory board as their Christmas gift. It was a very long process since we had about 100 to make, our fingers were all glued up, but in the end to see their faces at Christmas was priceless. Very nice gift to make!

wow am so impressed,i wish to try this on our diary ;down the memory line on sundays.thank you so much

This is a great program to do leading into July 1st new standards, person centred care is what it's all about, I love the idea of other staff being involved gleaning the information to get to know their residents

I have done a sunflower picture for each of my residents in the memory unit and have put information from their Life Story on each petal..it is then laminated and placed near the door so that staff can instantly see the information about the resident...it is like their story in a nutshell. I will now further this by doing the poster boards, love this idea.

On one of my units, I do something similar to this but I place them in a shadow box in each patients room. I ask a variety of questions and then I type the questions and the patients answers up adding pictures of relative things from their answers and place them in their shadow box. Then patients and families can add pictures and fun things from home in the shadow box too. Staff Love them as the information is great conversation starters especially for folks that are quiet and maybe having a difficult time adjusting or socializing with others!

Two of my residents familys did something similar to this and typed out a sheet of facts:

My name is xyz: and I was born in 1346

'Important steps in my life'

they then listed the steps chronologically eg

1974 Sold my house in Baxter Avenue

1976 my daughter, Anne, was born

this sheet of facts is so much help to the dementia resident who continually asks the same question, where is this place, have you seen my dog, etc. we read through the sheet and explain they have probably forgotten because that happens when you get older. Straight away they feel less anxious.

This memory board is also good to decrease problem behaviors https://www.goldencarers.com/how-to-decrease-problem-behaviors/5056/ because a resident can be brought to a quiet area with the board and a staff member before the behavior becomes problematic

Talking about the memory board will probably redirect and refocus the residents attention to what is on board and hopefully they will forget what upset them in the first place

A board like this is especially helpful to those who have dementia. If it is in a residents room, it can start discussions with staff and visitors.

Remind all that you never ask a resident with dementia "Do you remember?"

Instead say "Tell me about"

Molly shared a new article: Reminiscing: How to Create a Memory Board