Put an end to tension-filled interactions between long-term care staff and residents’ families with Promoting Family Involvement in Long-Term Care Settings. This innovative book offers strategies and programs designed to get families involved in formal care settings in constructive, cooperative ways that complement staff and support residents.
Nine intervention strategies are described in detail from inception to evaluation. Designed and implemented in nursing facilities across the United States, these model programs are replicable and will help facilities
- improve residents’ quality of life
- increase effective communication with families
- personalize care
- maintain connections between residents and families
- reduce staff stress levels
- boost overall facility morale
Written by the programs’ creators and facilitators, each chapter functions as a guide to implementation and includes relevant forms, guidelines, and protocols. Challenges of program implementation are discussed and practical recommendations for overcoming obstacles are provided.
Widely versatile, these nine programs can be successfully implemented in adult day services, assisted living facilities, and long-term care residential care settings. Useful for direct care staff, supervisors, and administrators, Promoting Family Involvement in Long-Term Care Settings is an invaluable resource for strengthening current relationships between staff, residents, and family members. The book is also equally beneficial in facilitating residents’ transitions to long-term care.
Model programs highlighted include
- The Family Stories Workshop
- The Eden Alternative™
- Web-based family interactions
- The Family Visitation Education Program
- Using family councils in residential long-term care
- Partners in Caregiving Communication program
- and more
About the Editor
Contributors
Foreword by Barbara Bowers
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1.
The Role of Families in Nursing Homes
(Joseph E. Gaugler)
Section I. Building and Refining Existing Strategies
Chapter 2.
Family Councils in Residential Long-Term Care
(Keith A. Anderson)
Chapter 3.
Promoting Family Involvement in Long-Term Care: A Certified Nursing Assistant’s Perspective
(Katherina A. Nikzad)
Chapter 4.
Making the Long-Term Care Environment More Like Home: The Eden Alternative: What Families Want, and Why
(Judith C. Drew)
Section II. Group- and Family-Based Strategies
Chapter 5.
Support for Families in the Nursing Home Environment: Family Caregiving, Social Support, and Support Group Benefits of the Family Project
(Terry Peak)
Chapter 6.
Supporting Families of Persons with Dementia Living in Nursing Homes: The Family Visit Education Program
(Philip McCallion)
Section III. Family-Staff Partnerships
Chapter 7.
The Family Stories Workshop
(Kenneth Hepburn and Wayne A. Caron)
Chapter 8.
Family Involvement in the Care of Residents with Dementia: An Important Resource for Quality of Life and Care
(Janet K. Pringle Specht, David Reed, and Meridean L. Maas)
Chapter 9.
Partners in Caregiving: Cooperative Communication Between Families and Nursing Homes
(Julie Robison and Karl A. Pillemer)
Section IV. The Future of Family Involvement Interventions
Chapter 10.
Educating Families and Improving Communication: A Web-Based Intervention Program for Families of Nursing Home Residents with Dementia
(Valerie E. Tolbert and Jennifer G. Basham)
Chapter 11.
Challenges and Solutions in Promoting Family Involvement in Nursing Homes: Looking Toward the Next Generation of Programs
(Joseph E. Gaugler)
Index
Joseph E. Gaugler, Ph.D., is currently an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at The University of Minnesota. He is also a faculty member of The Center on Aging and Center for Gerontological Nursing at The University of Minnesota.
Dr. Gaugler’s research examines the sources and effectiveness of long-term care for chronologically disabled older adults. As a developmental psychologist and Director of the Families and Long-Term Care Research Laboratory, Dr. Gaugler’s specific interests include the longitudinal ramifications of family care for disabled adults, the effectiveness of community-based and psychosocial services for chronically ill adults and their caregiving families, the social integration of residents in nursing homes and other emerging models of long-term care (e.g., assisted living, family care homes), and developmental methodology.
Dr. Gaugler currently serves on the editorial boards of The Gerontologist and Psychology and Aging. He was awarded the 2003 Springer Early Career Achievement Award in Adult Development and Aging Research from the American Psychological Association (Division 20: Adult Development and Aging).
admin –
“Promoting Family Involvement in Long-Term Care Settings provides practitioners, researchers, and families with examples of some of the excellent programs currently or recently implemented in long-term care settings…. The ultimate goal is to improve quality of life for the resident, and whether replicating one of the programs presented or developing a new intervention, this book can serve as a catalyst for improving nursing home care.”
―Journal of Gerontological Social Work
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“Nursing home administrators, directors of nursing, and directors of social work who wish to encourage and improve the participation of family members in the lives of residents will find an encouraging range of possibilities and practical information.”
–PsycCRITIQUES
admin –
“This book is packed with practice-tested approaches to meeting needs of family members of nursing home residents, and for helping family members to be active in the care of their relatives in nursing homes. Bound to provoke thought, it is an excellent launching pad for further action research in this important and complex area.”
Rosalie A. Kane, PhD, Professor, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota
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“The range of interventions discussed — from support groups to helping “hands-on” staff communicate well with families to web-based family interventions — is OUTSTANDING — this is a “must get, must use” book for any long-term care facility”
-Vicki L. Schmall, Ph.D., Gerontology & Training Specialist, Aging Concerns, West Linn, OR, Professor Emeritus and Former Gerontology Specialist, Oregon State University
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“This landmark book describes innovative approaches to integrate families into long-term care settings — these strategies will make the nursing home a better place for everyone––for residents, staff, and families.”
-Steven H. Zarit, Ph.D., Professor and Head, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Pennsylvania State University
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“Using the carefully researched methods that Joseph Gaugler has assembled for the reader can revolutionize the relationship between family and facility. This book is and will remain a vital resource. After all, family is forever.”
-William H. Thomas, M.D., Founder, The Eden Alternative, Summer Hill, New York