On July 25, 2023, Dr. Susan Wehry spoke about Optimal Engagement at a cocktail party held at the home of Judy Glickman Lauder and Leonard Lauder. Bernard Osher was recognized for his contribution to this important project. The Cedars partnered with the University of New England (UNE) to study better supports for people with dementia. An interdisciplinary group of UNE graduate students in healthcare fields dug deep into scientific literature to identify best practices, evidence-based strategies, and gaps in knowledge under the direction of Susan Wehry, MD, Associate Clinical Professor, UNE College of Medicine, who co-leads the initiative with Angela Hunt, RPT, MS, our Chief Innovation Officer. The team’s recommendations will be reviewed by panels which include people living with dementia. This feedback and insight will inform the development of widely accepted, person-centered best practices that will have a transformative impact on older adults living with dementia and their...
Posted in our blog on by Janine Fifield& filed under Latest News.
At the Lunder Memory Care Assisted Living Household, we believe that people with an Alzheimer’s and/or a dementia diagnosis, can continue to engage in meaningful activities and participate in their overall health and wellness when receiving support from healthcare partners trained in their specific needs. For each person, the dementia journey will be different, and the needs will change along the way with time. At the Lunder Memory Care Household, we believe that through careful and thoughtful evaluation and intervention, we can anticipate and prepare for predicted changes in cognitive function. Our interdisciplinary team approach provides opportunities for successful socialization, choice, personal care, and self-direction, all within the environment of home. Care is organized around resident choices and preferences for the day. Our program identifies strengths and allows for resident positive interactions enhancing resident self-worth and life satisfaction. Commitment: The Lunder Memory Care Program Offers residents a daily person-centered...
Posted in our blog on by Janine Fifield& filed under Atrium, Latest News.
Exercising in the water is low impact and delivers tremendous benefits to your cardiovascular and respiratory systems, not to mention, it can be a lot of fun! When you exercise in the water you are generally able to do a lot more than your body may allow on dry land. Along with some increased flexibility and balance, the push and pull of the water allow both increased muscle training and a built-in safety barrier for joints. The water also helps to reduce lactic acid buildup and offers a gentler natural resistance while training. Aquacising at The Atrium is offered three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The class is a go at your own pace and begins at 9:15am and lasts until 10:00am. The trainer stands outside of the water giving instructions and motivating the participants. Join a class today! ...
The Cedars is pleased to be the recipient of The Age friendly Health Systems award. Recognized as a leader in the rapidly growing movement committed to care for older adults that is: · Guided by an essential set of age friendly evidence-based practices across the 4 M’s (What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility). · Causes no harm and is consistent with What Matters to the older adult and their family. The Cedars continues its 93- year commitment and legacy of providing outstanding care for older adults. We are excited to be part of a nationwide movement to improve health care for older adults. Age-Friendly Health Systems is an initiative of The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United...
When you think of senior living communities, do you imagine playing bingo all day? Think again! From day trips to exciting destinations around southern Maine to sensory gardening, reiki massage, and wine and cheese parties, The Cedars finds fresh ways to keep older adults active, engaged, and connected to each other and the world. Yes, you can join a rollicking bingo game at The Cedars, (Free Money Monday Bingo is cutthroat competitive, so bring your game face!) But activities for seniors at The Cedars go far beyond bingo. Our life enrichment team fills our assisted living activities calendar with vibrant, diverse, and lively opportunities to socialize with others, learn new skills and find new passions, improve health and cognitive functioning, experience the natural world, and make meaningful contributions to the wider community. Here are just some of the unexpected and innovative ways our residents make the most of this...
Posted in our blog on by Janine Fifield& filed under Latest News.
The Cedars was selected out of many long-term care communities to participate in the Maine Dementia Care Partnership (MDCP) free, virtual education program, Addressing Root Causes of Cognitive Decline: A Guide to Preventing and Reducing Antipsychotics and How a New Maine Dementia Care Toolkit Can Help. Held on February 8 & 15, 2022, the program introduced the Partnership’s new resident-centered dementia care toolkit entitled “Is it for me, or for you?” Resident-Centered Dementia Care Toolkit . The toolkit is the result of grant-funded work by Partnership members and clinicians, over the course of several months. It provides a conceptual framework, roadmap, and step-by-step guide to help nursing homes successfully reduce off-label antipsychotic drug use within their settings. It includes strategies for educating and collaborating with various constituencies, fostering community wide commitment to reducing A/P utilization, using data to inform decision making, developing dementia care competencies for staff, and identifying...
Strategies to Help Your Parents Feel at Home in a Retirement Community Moving your parent(s) into a retirement community can be a very difficult process. We’ve met with hundreds of families and have put together some of the best tips we’ve seen for children to make the transition easier. Your family worked together to help your aging parents make a big decision: moving into a retirement community, like assisted living or long-term skilled nursing care. Their lives are about to become safer, simpler, and more rewarding, and the transition to a retirement community does not need to be stressful. Our quick tips guide can get you started on moving elders with ease. Yes, moving a parent to a retirement community is a big change—a change for the better. These benefits include more opportunities to socialize, make new friends and engage in meaningful activities, with caring supportive staff to...
Posted in our blog on by Janine Fifield& filed under Latest News.
There are many resources on transitioning to a retirement lifestyle, but sorting through them can be overwhelming. We’ve compiled our favorite books on retirement living to make it easier for you to get important information you can trust. Retirement planning books, books on aging parents, and guides to retirement living are everywhere. How do you sort through them all to find a book that can speak to the challenges you and your loved ones are facing? Our senior living professionals here at The Cedars have compiled their favorite books on how to prepare for retirement and adjusting to assisted living so you can find retirement resources you can trust. Are your parents thinking about retirement or moving into assisted living—or avoiding thinking about these steps? Are you and your siblings struggling to start important conversations or finding you can’t agree among yourselves? These life changes are not easy, and...
Posted in our blog on by Janine Fifield& filed under Latest News.
There are so many benefits to senior learning programs, from improving memory to boosting health and fitness. Discover lifelong learning resources in our senior community. Never Stop Learning! Four Ways Seniors Can Continue to Learn Senior learning does not have to slow down. The popular belief that it becomes harder to learn new things as we grow older is not true. Recent scientific studies have shown that the human brain retains the ability to absorb new information as we age as long as we continue to challenge ourselves, mentally and physically. At The Cedars, we know there are big benefits to lifelong learning for seniors, and our senior learning programs are designed to keep our members and residents learning, growing, and thriving in their retirement. When we were infants and school-age children, the whole world was new. Our eager minds soaked up all this new information like sponges. As...
The last thing you want to worry about when adjusting to retirement living is money. Here, we will guide you to retirement planning resources and certified senior advisors to make your golden years stress free. Planning for retirement means making sure you have the resources you need to secure the care and comfort you want. Depending on your expected MaineCare benefit, financing assisted living may take advanced planning. A certified senior advisor can help you forecast your assisted living costs and find financial freedom in retirement. Understanding long term care expenses and assisted living costs in Maine can be complicated and confusing. The price of services varies greatly across the state and MaineCare Services covers very specific levels of care and services. Whether you anticipate aging in place and accessing home care or moving into assisted living or memory care assisted living at some point in the future, life...
On July 25, 2023, Dr. Susan Wehry spoke about Optimal Engagement at a cocktail party held at the home of Judy Glickman Lauder and Leonard Lauder. Bernard Osher was recognized for his contribution to this important project. The Cedars partnered with the University of New England (UNE) to study better supports for people with dementia. An interdisciplinary group of UNE graduate students in healthcare fields dug deep into scientific literature to identify best practices, evidence-based strategies, and gaps in knowledge under the direction of Susan Wehry, MD, Associate Clinical Professor, UNE College of Medicine, who co-leads the initiative with Angela Hunt, RPT, MS, our Chief Innovation Officer. The team’s recommendations will be reviewed by panels which include people living with dementia. This feedback and insight will inform the development of widely accepted, person-centered best practices that will have a transformative impact on older adults living with dementia and their...
At the Lunder Memory Care Assisted Living Household, we believe that people with an Alzheimer’s and/or a dementia diagnosis, can continue to engage in meaningful activities and participate in their overall health and wellness when receiving support from healthcare partners trained in their specific needs. For each person, the dementia journey will be different, and the needs will change along the way with time. At the Lunder Memory Care Household, we believe that through careful and thoughtful evaluation and intervention, we can anticipate and prepare for predicted changes in cognitive function. Our interdisciplinary team approach provides opportunities for successful socialization, choice, personal care, and self-direction, all within the environment of home. Care is organized around resident choices and preferences for the day. Our program identifies strengths and allows for resident positive interactions enhancing resident self-worth and life satisfaction. Commitment: The Lunder Memory Care Program Offers residents a daily person-centered...
Exercising in the water is low impact and delivers tremendous benefits to your cardiovascular and respiratory systems, not to mention, it can be a lot of fun! When you exercise in the water you are generally able to do a lot more than your body may allow on dry land. Along with some increased flexibility and balance, the push and pull of the water allow both increased muscle training and a built-in safety barrier for joints. The water also helps to reduce lactic acid buildup and offers a gentler natural resistance while training. Aquacising at The Atrium is offered three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The class is a go at your own pace and begins at 9:15am and lasts until 10:00am. The trainer stands outside of the water giving instructions and motivating the participants. Join a class today! ...
The Cedars is pleased to be the recipient of The Age friendly Health Systems award. Recognized as a leader in the rapidly growing movement committed to care for older adults that is: · Guided by an essential set of age friendly evidence-based practices across the 4 M’s (What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility). · Causes no harm and is consistent with What Matters to the older adult and their family. The Cedars continues its 93- year commitment and legacy of providing outstanding care for older adults. We are excited to be part of a nationwide movement to improve health care for older adults. Age-Friendly Health Systems is an initiative of The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United...
When you think of senior living communities, do you imagine playing bingo all day? Think again! From day trips to exciting destinations around southern Maine to sensory gardening, reiki massage, and wine and cheese parties, The Cedars finds fresh ways to keep older adults active, engaged, and connected to each other and the world. Yes, you can join a rollicking bingo game at The Cedars, (Free Money Monday Bingo is cutthroat competitive, so bring your game face!) But activities for seniors at The Cedars go far beyond bingo. Our life enrichment team fills our assisted living activities calendar with vibrant, diverse, and lively opportunities to socialize with others, learn new skills and find new passions, improve health and cognitive functioning, experience the natural world, and make meaningful contributions to the wider community. Here are just some of the unexpected and innovative ways our residents make the most of this...
The Cedars was selected out of many long-term care communities to participate in the Maine Dementia Care Partnership (MDCP) free, virtual education program, Addressing Root Causes of Cognitive Decline: A Guide to Preventing and Reducing Antipsychotics and How a New Maine Dementia Care Toolkit Can Help. Held on February 8 & 15, 2022, the program introduced the Partnership’s new resident-centered dementia care toolkit entitled “Is it for me, or for you?” Resident-Centered Dementia Care Toolkit . The toolkit is the result of grant-funded work by Partnership members and clinicians, over the course of several months. It provides a conceptual framework, roadmap, and step-by-step guide to help nursing homes successfully reduce off-label antipsychotic drug use within their settings. It includes strategies for educating and collaborating with various constituencies, fostering community wide commitment to reducing A/P utilization, using data to inform decision making, developing dementia care competencies for staff, and identifying...
Strategies to Help Your Parents Feel at Home in a Retirement Community Moving your parent(s) into a retirement community can be a very difficult process. We’ve met with hundreds of families and have put together some of the best tips we’ve seen for children to make the transition easier. Your family worked together to help your aging parents make a big decision: moving into a retirement community, like assisted living or long-term skilled nursing care. Their lives are about to become safer, simpler, and more rewarding, and the transition to a retirement community does not need to be stressful. Our quick tips guide can get you started on moving elders with ease. Yes, moving a parent to a retirement community is a big change—a change for the better. These benefits include more opportunities to socialize, make new friends and engage in meaningful activities, with caring supportive staff to...
There are many resources on transitioning to a retirement lifestyle, but sorting through them can be overwhelming. We’ve compiled our favorite books on retirement living to make it easier for you to get important information you can trust. Retirement planning books, books on aging parents, and guides to retirement living are everywhere. How do you sort through them all to find a book that can speak to the challenges you and your loved ones are facing? Our senior living professionals here at The Cedars have compiled their favorite books on how to prepare for retirement and adjusting to assisted living so you can find retirement resources you can trust. Are your parents thinking about retirement or moving into assisted living—or avoiding thinking about these steps? Are you and your siblings struggling to start important conversations or finding you can’t agree among yourselves? These life changes are not easy, and...
There are so many benefits to senior learning programs, from improving memory to boosting health and fitness. Discover lifelong learning resources in our senior community. Never Stop Learning! Four Ways Seniors Can Continue to Learn Senior learning does not have to slow down. The popular belief that it becomes harder to learn new things as we grow older is not true. Recent scientific studies have shown that the human brain retains the ability to absorb new information as we age as long as we continue to challenge ourselves, mentally and physically. At The Cedars, we know there are big benefits to lifelong learning for seniors, and our senior learning programs are designed to keep our members and residents learning, growing, and thriving in their retirement. When we were infants and school-age children, the whole world was new. Our eager minds soaked up all this new information like sponges. As...
The last thing you want to worry about when adjusting to retirement living is money. Here, we will guide you to retirement planning resources and certified senior advisors to make your golden years stress free. Planning for retirement means making sure you have the resources you need to secure the care and comfort you want. Depending on your expected MaineCare benefit, financing assisted living may take advanced planning. A certified senior advisor can help you forecast your assisted living costs and find financial freedom in retirement. Understanding long term care expenses and assisted living costs in Maine can be complicated and confusing. The price of services varies greatly across the state and MaineCare Services covers very specific levels of care and services. Whether you anticipate aging in place and accessing home care or moving into assisted living or memory care assisted living at some point in the future, life...