Caregivers incorporating exercises into personal care

Keeping residents mobile reducing injuries

January 25, 2010 -- Deron Hamel

Personal support workers (PSWs) at Village Green have been incorporating exercises into residents' personal care, in an effort to increase mobility and reduce the risk of falls.

Megan Sproule, a physiotherapist with Family Physiotherapy Centre, the company providing physiotherapy services to the Greater Napanee long-term care home, says PSWs are integrating the home's walking program and range-of-motion exercises, while tending to residents' daily routines, such as assisting residents going to the dining room or to programs.

"Instead of pushing someone along in a wheelchair, they will walk along side them while (the resident uses) a walker, giving (the resident) supervision and support that way," Sproule explains.

To bolster the home's falls-prevention program, team members are gathering information about residents who have fallen and responding to each fall.

When a fall does occur, the physiotherapy team responds by developing an individualized program to improve the resident's mobility and mitigate the chance of future falls.

"We are trying to focus on keeping people mobile," Sproule says. "One thing that we're finding is that when people do fall the injuries are not severe."

As a testament to this success, Sproule notes that one of the home's residents, who has had recurring falls, has nonetheless been maintaining his mobility and has experienced no injuries.

Because the resident has been enhancing his mobility, he has been able to continue to participate the home's walking program, as well as other activities at the home, she adds.

PSWs, life enrichment staff and the home's physiotherapy team also work with residents who have no falling issues to help continue to build upon strengths.

This, says Sproule, is especially important, given that OMNI homes are near full implementation of the Resident Assessment Instrument Minimum Data Set (RAI-MDS 2.0), a set of computerized care management tools helping health professionals assess and monitor residents' care needs, with more emphasis will be placed on residents' strengths and abilities.

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