An interdisciplinary approach to improving the quality of life for nursing home residents

As people live longer, there is a greater concern about not only the increasing life span but the quality of life (QOL) in later years. The purpose of this project was to design and pilot test interdisciplinary interventions with nursing home residents and to improve their QOL. This article focuses on interdisciplinary interventions that evolved during the project. While this program was an additional responsibility for members of the team, many benefits were realized and range from increased resident satisfaction to cost savings, to the recruitment of staff. An interdisciplinary team approach can be an effective means to improve quality of life for residents of nursing homes.