A healthy working environment, a passionate team of caretakers and well-treated patients is of course the best baseline for everybody. But helping patients with dementia is not easy and it can be difficult for the staff to give the needed care and understanding within the available timeframe. Especially if the patients change characters, lose their senses of themselves and their surroundings, and if they become increasingly agitated and restless. Sleep disorders, inappropriate behaviour, and restless walking can make day-to-day life stressful not only for the patient but also for their relatives and the staff looking after them.
One way to help patients with dementia to a better quality of life can be through sensory stimulation and focus on the sensory needs. Peace of body and mind helps the patients to have a good everyday life and creates a pleasant working environment for the caretakers. In this light, a Danish project was established to focus on the positive side effects welfare technology for both patients with dementia and their caretakers.
This project documents that Protac’s products have a calming effect on patients with dementia. The sensory stimulation interventions reduced physical and mental unrest by 60% and contributed to increased comfort and a reduction in aggressive and extrovert behaviour. Furthermore, the working environment improved significantly during the period, and the initiatives reduced the general risk of violence by 29 %.
How does it work?
Sensory stimulating helping aids relieve restlessness in body and mind because the Protac products stimulate both the sense of touch and the sense of movement. All the products contain balls, and when balls move slightly on the body, a new sense of pressure and touch will be transmitted to the brain. This enhances body awareness and provides a sense of security and calm in the body and mind. This is why many people experience that the products relieve stress and anxiety while promoting concentration and focus.
Project results
• Overall, the initiatives in the pilot project were seen to reduce physical and mental unrest by 60% and contribute to increased comfort and a reduction in aggressive and extrovert behaviour.
• Using the calming sensory stimulation helping aids resulted in a total reduction in physical and mental unrest of 23%. This resulted in fewer conflicts (40% reduction), fewer incidents of trying to get out (31%), and increased peace at night (33%). Improved sleep patterns resulted in longer periods of deep sleep and less getting out of bed.
• The working environment improved significantly during the period, and the technologies reduced the
general risk of violence by 29%. Both the threats of violence and the reports of violence fell by 40%
• The staff prefer technologies that are intuitive to use and that help users feel calm.
Sensory stimulation helps both patients and caretakers
The pilot project documents the calming effect of Protac’s products on persons with dementia. It also emphasizes that sensory stimulation can give a sense of well-being and security through deep pressures and a clear body awareness - preventing and alleviating insecurity, anxiety and stress.
In addition, it shows that the use of Protac’s sensory stimulating aids has a positive impact on the working environment of the staff, making the nursing home a safe and more comfortable place to work.
The qualitative data clearly shows that technologies helping users to feel calm are the top priority. The product must be intuitive to use, as time and resources are key parameters of day-to-day life in a care home.
It is clear that the products work by helping users to feel calm and secure, as well as reducing the number of day-to-day conflicts between users and staff. The Protac products included in the project were the Protac MyFit® (ball vest) and the Protac Ball Blanket® Granulate
Follow-up findings document that using the sensory stimulating products releases 20 minutes staff time per citizen per day – and that the Return on Investment in welfare technology is less than 10 months
For more information on the project
Cases and figures from the project
Data from the project shows that the Protac Ball Blanket® Granulate helped an elderly woman with dementia achieve better sleep at night. During the trial period, her deep sleep increased by 42%, and the number of times she got out of bed decreased by 38%. Deep sleep is crucial for everyone’s well-being, both in terms of overall health and mental energy for the following day.
Protac MyFit® was also a part of the project and was, among others, on an elderly man who showed signs of severe physical restlessness and aggressive behavior. Before-and-after measurements using the ball vest showed that the physical restlessness decreased by 65%. This was particularly noticeable in the mornings, helping the man to better manage morning care routines, dressing, breakfast, and morning activities.
Quotes from the caretakers during the project:
- "We now use ball blankets and ball vests as our first choice instead of sedative medication."
- "We see a lasting effect."
- "The ball blanket helped change residents’ circadian rhythm, allowing them to participate in training and activities."
In addition to the Protac Ball Blanket® Granulate and Protac MyFit®, there are several other products that can be beneficial for the same target group:
Products
Protac SenSit®
A sensory-stimulating chair with balls and “wings” that wrap around the user, providing a sense of security and physical relaxation. The chair can, for example, be used in communal areas to enable social participation.
Protac KneedMe®
A knee blanket filled with sensory-stimulating balls. It is intuitive to use and can help to make care situations feel safer and more comfortable.
Protac SensOn®
A sensory-stimulating collar that relaxes the neck, shoulders, and chest. The collar is discreet and comfortable to wear, and can help reduce restlessness and anxiety, while improving body awareness.
Protac SensCircle®
A flexible, sensory-stimulating pillow filled with balls. It can be bent and wrapped, offering countless possibilities for activity, relaxation and rest.
