A Day at Triple-R
Every day dozens of older men and women gather together in a special place called Triple-R to enjoy each other's company, dance to their favorite song, try their hand at a new art project, laugh and joke with each other--and stay safe. What they have in common is some form of dementia--usually Alzheimer's Disease--that often hinders them from socializing and makes it impossible to do things we take for granted such as drive a car, cook or even use a telephone. But in an environment where the emphasis is placed on the person's abilities and where experienced staff can minimize the daily frustrations of living with memory loss and deal with the tougher issues of dementia (such as wandering, confusion and anxiety) , the participants thrive. Conveniently located in senior centers in Midtown as well as North and South Sacramento, you can hear peals of laughter coming from one of the program rooms where participants are enthusiastically finishing reciting riddles they learned in childhood at the prompting of a smiling staff member. "Round and round the rugged rock a ragged rascal ran!" shouts a participant triumphantly, remember the phrase exactly. The session will soon end and the participants will go for a walk in the tree-lined park around the senior center and then as evening nears, family members will arrive to pick their loved ones up for the night.
The Gift of Time
The time the participant has spent in the program has been a blessing for the family member as well. Studies now show that providing care long-term for an older adult can do significant damage to the caregiver's health if they don't successfully manage the stress that naturally surfaces when taking care of someone with special needs. Unfortunately, there are few resources available for families to cope with dementia. Triple-R offers expert care in a community setting, giving the person caring for a loved one a break and allowing them the freedom to take care of other parts of their lives. For some, this may mean being able to go to work. For others, attending their child's soccer game without having to worry about her mother wandering away and getting lost. For another person, just an afternoon to themselves with no responsibilities. Respite takes many forms depending on the individual circumstances of the caregiver.
The Results
Caregivers often remark that participation in the program is the cornerstone to allowing them to care for their loved one at home longer than if they were doing the care solely on their own. In a recent survey, 80% of caregivers with a family member currently enrolled in Triple-R reported they have been able to keep their loved one at home--rather than placing them in institutional care--because of their participation in Triple-R and 60% of current caregivers strongly believe their own overall health and wellbeing has improved since the person they care for started attending Triple-R. Caregivers also report that the participant is often more content hours or even a day after attending Triple-R.
If you are caring for a loved one with dementia, Triple-R might be able to help. A program of the City of Sacramento Parks and Recreation Department for 18 years and licensed by the State Department of Social Services, Triple-R is the leading adult day program in Sacramento county specializing in providing quality recreational and personal care for people with early, moderate and even late stage dementia. For more information about Triple-R visit our website at: www.tripler.org
