I have a wonderful friend who lives in a nursing home. Actually, I have many wonderful friends who live in nursing homes, but I want to tell you about Ruthie and her daughter Monica.
Ruthie is just about the cutest thing ever! She loves to be dressed to the nines, have her hair done beautifully and be treated like a princess. She is rarely seen without a smile, even when illness or pain overtakes her frail little body. She has a giggle that can bring a smile to the toughest of characters, her favorite color is pink and Ruthie loves music.
Monica is one of Ruthie's children. She has overseen the care of her mother for several years now and is constantly doing anything she can to improve life in a nursing home not only for her mother but for those who also reside there. Monica believes, as does the staff at the nursing home, that the quality of each moment for the residents is vital to their well being.
I was at an assisted living facility last week and some of the most beautiful music was being played as the residents were involved in a game of Dominos. They allowed me to join in the game, but I was warned "not to cheat". (Who told them?) The conversation was light and cheerful. I was being carefully watched by Bill* to make sure I placed the Domino correctly. One sweet resident seemed caught up in the melody of the current song and had to be reminded to take her turn. As I noticed the effect of the music on her I found myself also focusing on the music. It was beautiful, even calming. After the game, which I did not win, I asked Margo, the activity director, what music she had been playing. It was a CD she had gotten from Reader's Digest with music from the 1940's. She said it was the resident's favorite. I thought a lot about that music over the next few days and then received an email from Monica talking about music in a nursing home, particularly during meal time. I did a little research on the topic and thought I would share the information with you.
Music is magical. I cannot think of anything else that can get my heart pumping, my toe tapping, my head bobbing and even elicit singing from the top of my lungs (mostly in the confines of my very private car). Recently, I have found that music from Michael Jackson on the Wii in my home can make me dance and sing like a rock star. I will argue with anyone who does not believe this:) Music can also calm me, remind me of beautiful memories with loved ones and even bring a tear to my eye. Yes, music is magical.
A study in the Archives of Psychiatric Nursing found relaxing music buffered the general noise level typically found in dining rooms of nursing homes and that it exerted a calming effect that reduced agitated behaviors among residents with severe cognitive impairment. Their study was carried out during a four week period where they spent the first week getting behavior baselines, the second week music was played during mealtimes, the third week the music was removed and during the fourth week it was reintroduced. It was no surprise to find that negative behaviors decreased more than 60% during the weeks that music was played.
During my time serving in a nursing home I watched as music programs could affect even the most distant resident. Smiles would come across the face of unlikely candidates and some who rarely spoke could not be held back when a familiar tune was heard and they remembered the words. Yes, music is magical!
Because of this, Freedom will be sharing music CD's with our friends at facilities across the county. We hope it will make a difference in the lives of their residents and even the staff. Thank you Monica for the idea and especially, thank you Ruthie, for making so many people smile!
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