Concordia Has New Unit For Dementia Patients

Concordia Care Center in Bella Vista has opened a 16-bed unit designed for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

Byron Hooppaw, admin-istrator for the nursing home, says the unit is the culmination of two years of planning. The specialized unit is not unique for the region, but it is the first in Bella Vista where the need for such services is enhanced because of the retirement community nature of the village, he explains.

The unit, which officially opened Aug. 3 with 10 patients, involved little new construction. Instead, the nursing home converted 16 of the 102 beds for which it is currently licensed, Hooppaw says. The area has been enclosed and various security systems were installed, including a video monitoring system and a guard system for the doorways. There’s a dining and indoor-activity area as well as an outdoor activity center.

Dementia, says Hooppaw, “is a misunderstood disease most of the time” and one that’s often difficult for family members to cope with as patients progress to the more severe stages of the disease.

At Concordia’s unit, every function of daily living, from grooming to eating, will be incorporated into some sort of activity, Hooppaw says. As an example, he noted that the unit will mark “happy hour” every day, where patients will be served liquids in tea cups or mixed-drink glasses or whatever they’re accustomed to at home. It’s an activity for the patients, but, from the medical staff’s view, it’s ensuring the patients drink an adequate amount of fluids.

Hooppaw says the unit has fewer patients per staff member — about five or six patients for each staffer — than other sections of the nursing facility.