Spiritual Sensory Box - Goals and Benefits

Not all residents with dementia have the attention span and remaining social skills needed to attend a traditional worship service. They may, however, derive great benefit from faith-sharing experiences tailored to their remaining strengths. In addition, feeling that the resident has something to teach the visitor about spirituality and courage in the face of dementia can help inspire a visitor or family member to form a new spiritual bond with the resident. This spiritual connection with the resident ministers to the resident and the visitor. Communication will take on new dimensions as it becomes more non-verbal, more sensory, and validates emotions expressed, whether they make sense to the visitor or not.

This program can also help family members to re-establish or maintain familiar bonds with the resident by giving them a means of connecting emotionally once again with their loved one.

1. Enlist resident families, significant others, volunteers, and church members to put together spiritual sensory boxes for each resident with dementia. The resident's own religious or spiritual articles should be included if possible, and any other symbols of faith and spirituality that are meaningful to the resident.
2. A person who knows how to communicate with residents with dementia should be available to teach the program to families, volunteers and for follow-up help and moral support.
3. A history of the resident's past spiritual practices should be written and included for others to share with the resident. (This idea could be introduced in a meeting held for interested family and volunteers. Each volunteer could be assigned to prepare a spiritual history and sensory box working with one resident and family/or staff member. Or it could be taken on as a project by staff, church groups, school age or college groups, senior volunteers, girl scouts, etc. that volunteer service to the facility. Volunteers should be matched to residents with the same spiritual philosophy or traditions).
4. A person who is familiar and trusted by the resident should be present for the first visit to introduce the visitor and stay until the resident seems comfortable with the visitor. It is essential that the visitor try to develop a gentle rapport with the resident by trying to understand what the resident is about spiritually. Input on the resident's past spiritual practices from the family and primary care aide should be available for the visitor.
5. It is helpful for the visitor to establish a ritual for the visit that can be repeated each time. The visitor needs to observe the resident for clues to the particular actions that elicit a positive response and then build on them. All responses are accepted as valid and responded to with empathy and concern.