Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/557366
optimize behavioral health. This has prompted more nursing homes to explore nonpharmacologic approaches. Impact: Skilled touch helps ease distress that leads to challenging behaviors and agitation for those living with dementia, and may help reduce antipsychotic medication use. INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS Need: Long-term care organizations are very competitive. They must offer programs that set them apart in order to attract customers and referrals. Impact: The services of a massage professional with specialized skills represent an innovative program that consumers are looking for, giving the facility a marketing edge. This is often the reason massage programs BRINGING COMFORT TO OUR AGING POPUL ATION Resources Allen, J. Nursing Home Federal Requirements: Guidelines to Surveyors and Survey. New York: Springer Publishing Company, 2007. Alzheimer's Association. 2005. "Dementia Care Practice Recommendations for Assisted Living Residences and Nursing Homes." Accessed July 2015. www.alz.org. American Health Care Association. Accessed July 2015. www.ahca.org. Bonner, A. 2012. "Improving Dementia Care and Reducing Unnecessary Use of Antipsychotic Medications in Nursing Homes." Accessed July 2015. https://doh.sd.gov/news/documents/cms_dementia_care.pdf. Hospice and Palliative Nurse Association. Accessed July 2015. www.hpna.org. Institute for Caregiver Education. Accessed July 2015. www.caregivereducation.org. Journal of Gerontological Nursing. May 2003. Accessed July 2015. www.jognonline.com. National Center for Health Statistics. Accessed July 2015. www.cdc.gov. Pioneer Network. Accessed July 2015. www.pioneernetwork.net. Radulovic, J. W., and J. L. Person. "Trends in Hospice and Palliative Care in the United States and Kansas." The Kansas Nurse 79, no. 9 (October 2004). Resnick, B, A. Kolanowski, and K. Van Haitsma. "Promoting Positive Behavioral Health: A Nonpharmacologic Toolkit for Senior Living Communities." Geriatric Nursing 35, no. 1 (2014). Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine. Accessed July 2015. www.miami.edu/touch.research. University of Buffalo Institute for Person-Centered Care. Accessed July 2015. www.ubipcc.com. US Census Bureau. "2010 Census Shows 65 and Older Population Growing Faster Than Total US Population." Accessed July 2015. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/2010_census/cb11-cn192.html. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed July 2015. www.cdc.gov. US Department of Health and Human Services. Accessed July 2015. www.hhs.gov. are added. Family members enjoy the positive response of their loved one to this comfort care, leading to greater peace of mind and confi dence in their choice of facility. STAFF SATISFACTION Need: Facilities must attract and retain staff. Staff turnover and burnout are a huge, costly problems in eldercare. Impact: Increased staff satisfaction. Staff members win in two ways: indirectly, when the elders in their care have fewer complaints and are more content, and directly if they, too, receive an occasional massage, easing caregiver stress. CULTURE CHANGE Need: Nursing homes are challenged to adopt culture change practices. Culture change (also known as person-centered care) is the name of a movement to transform senior services and the long-term care medical model to one that nurtures the human spirit while meeting medical needs. Impact: Having a massage therapy program in place demonstrates the organization's engagement in person- centered care and culture change. The Institute for Caregiver Education, which offers continuing education and professional development to health- care managers, identifi es massage as a best practice in culture change, indicating the following benefi ts: F r e e S O A P n o t e s w i t h M a s s a g e B o o k f o r A B M P m e m b e r s : a b m p . u s / M a s s a g e b o o k 57