Pre- and postoccupancy evaluation of new dementia care cottages

Concerns about negative outcomes associated with relocating residents are common. Fifty-five residents of a traditional high-care nursing home moved to new, purpose-built, dementia-specific cottages; 35 additional residents moved into the cottages within the first 8 months of operation. Direct-care staff participated in workshops on engaging residents in life-skill activities. Resident behavior was observed using a time sampling and a de-identified behavior mapping procedure. Results showed increases in resident engagement following the move and further increases after staff training. Staff engagement in resident interactive tasks similarly increased both after the move and again after staff training. The newly built cottages scored higher across all domains of 3 different types of environmental assessment, and family satisfaction ratings also improved. These results suggest that relocation need not negatively affect residents with dementia and that this environment provides an attractive model of care for dementia facilities.