New memory care program at Essex Center adds art

ELIZABETHTOWN | Essex Center is building a new dementia and memory care program at their rehabilitation and wellness facility here. On three walls in the center, they have placed interactive murals that encourage residents to remember places and activities they've enjoyed in life. "Essex Center has been building the foundation for a much-needed dementia program where they already have a new unit in place," Center spokesman Jeffrey Jacomowitz said in a recent email. "In order to excite patients, Essex Center worked with a Canadian company in Ontario called Creative Art Co. and purchased three very gorgeous murals to start with. These murals have added a much-needed touch of comfort to the walls of the unit." The wall-sized artwork feature gardens, or a winding river, walkways and other familiar places. The company also has bookshelf murals that can be used on a door to divert patients from any unannounced exit. "Murals like these promote conversations about long ago and encourage memories from their homes and life, such as pets, gardens and wildlife," Jacomowitz said. "From a mural showing a countryside and wide open pastures to a window flower box, dementia residents start discussing their lives as it relates to the art. For Essex Center, it is the start of developing a much-needed dementia program for the unit." The flower boxes and wildflower fields have interactive pots and slots to "pick" or "plant" stems and bunches of artificial flowers. Memory care patients can rearrange the bouquets and stems as they like. And the flowers can be changed to fit the season. Creative Art Co. was founded by Karen and Brian Romeril about 12 years ago when they were asked to provide artwork for a memory care home. The interactive aspect of the art and the familiar landscapes and homescapes encourages residents to talk and remember. "It starts with an uplifting visual that reunites residents-in-care with nature or everyday scenes that memories are made of, such as kids playing baseball, farmyard scenes or a tree that changes with the seasons," the artists explain on their website. Color and contrast are important for people living with a form of dementia as visual perception is often affected with the condition, they said. "Then, we do our best to incorporate an activity - fruit picking, flower arranging or…something else. These visuals can also be a destination for visiting family on strolls down the hallways with their loved ones." The interactive art is becoming an enjoyable space at Essex Center.

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New memory care program at Essex Center adds art

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