Caregivers Training Program Planned

Nursing home and home care workers will soon have a program to help them understand and assist seniors with challenging behaviours.

As part of its plan to improve care for seniors, the Department of Health has released a request for proposals for a new education program for health-care workers involved with seniors with so-called challenging behaviours. A challenging behaviour is one that may have the potential to cause harm or distress to the senior or to others and can include wandering, disruptive outbursts, verbal, physical or sexual abuse.

"Professionals in the nursing home sector and those offering home care have told us they need help providing specialized care for people who have difficult behaviours," said Health Minister Angus MacIsaac. "As a result, providing this help is a priority in our seniors' program. I'm happy that we are now moving out of the planning phase and into implementing a carefully designed program that starts with educating health-care professionals."

Although exact numbers are not known, it is estimated that about 80 per cent of seniors in nursing homes have a dementia or mental illness. These and other health conditions may result in a challenging behaviour. (About four per cent of Nova Scotia's seniors live in nursing homes.)

The department is seeking an education program for continuing care providers that will be provided in at least six locations across the province. It is expected that between 150 and 200 people will enrol during the first year (2004-05). The curriculum must provide the knowledge and skills, based on best practices, that caregivers need. The program will be evaluated for its effectiveness.

Patricia Bland, administrator of Scotia Nursing Homes Limited in Beaverbank, is a member of the Challenging Behaviour Working Group that consulted with caregivers and mental health professionals over the past year and a half to determine the best model for this project.

"Nursing home residents today are very different than they were 10 years ago. They tend to have many more health needs and are much more likely to display challenging behaviours," said Ms. Bland. "Care providers need support in dealing with these issues and it's encouraging to have support for the changing needs of our residents."

The education program will be one component of an overall approach to continuing care for clients with challenging behaviours. The full approach is expected to be rolled out over the next three to four years.