Category: Optum – Team B

Ethnography Summary

Mark interviewed Bob Freund, a resident at Morningside Memory Center, to learn about his life at Morningside and how he spends his free time. Bob is not very active and suffers from dementia.

(Roger asked us not to take pictures of any of the residents or around the facilities.)

 

Date: 3/6/17

Type: Interview

Location: Morningside Memory Care Center

Team participants: Mark Egan

User: Bob Freund

User Characteristics:

Male, Age 67

Previous Occupation: Heavy Machinery Worker (25 years)

From: South Bend, IN

 

What is this person about – what drives him/her?  

Bob hangs onto memories of his past passions. He speaks fondly about his days fishing on his

charter boat in Lake Michigan and playing baseball when he was younger.

 

Memorable quote from interview: “We just watch TV, don’t do much of the others.” (in response to card       sort question)

   

Key Insight – Many people with dementia maintain certain habits from earlier in life and it is therapeutic for them to repeat these habits.

 

ACTIVITIES:

• Television
• Spending time with friends
• Relaxing
• Other activities provided by Morningside
• Cooking (spaghetti and scallions)
• Gardening
• Fishing
• Going outside

 

ENVIRONMENT:

• Morningside facilities
• Kitchen
• Garden

 

INTERACTIONS:

• Interacts with nurses
• Interacts with other residents
• Cooks

 

OBJECTS:

• Kitchenware
• Television
• Board games

 

USERS:

• Family
• Friends at Morningside
• Nurses and staff at Morningside

Analogous Immersion: Athletic Injury Prevention (Using the 5 “E” Framework)

 

For my analogous immersion, I referred to my summer internship as a Physical Therapy Aide as I considered the process of taking preventative action against injury.

 

ENTICE

• When an athlete sees friends get injured or feels pain themselves, it becomes wise to take preventative action before a real injury occurs.
• Preventative exercise also improves strength in healthy joints.

ENTER

• Athletes may begin preventative exercise on their own or with a Physical Therapist.
• This type of training can be prompted by an injury, pain, or personal preference.

ENGAGE

• Athletes will receive heat therapy, ice therapy, stimulation therapy, and massage therapy.
• Athletes will also perform range-of-motion exercises as well as active exercises to strengthen joins and connective tissue.
• They will also perform different stretching exercises.
• It is critical that athletes develop routines and perform exercises often and with consistency in order to make this effective.

EXIT

• Ideally, people do not stop performing these maintenance techniques as it will help for athletic activities as well as longevity.

EXTEND

• After an injury is healed or proper joint stability is achieved, athletes may return to past exercise habits and continue to practice proper technique and body awareness.

 

Takeaways

• Preventative exercise and physical therapy are similar to good retirement practices.
• Both require discipline, routines, and consistency.
• Both improve longevity.

Ethnography Summary

Mark interviewed Roger, the Executive Director from Morningside Memory Care Center, about his experiences working there and his insights into the lives of elderly people with dementia and Alzheimer’s and the care they require.

Date: 3/6/17

Type: Interview

Location: Morningside Memory Care Center

Team participants: Mark Egan

User: Roger Garmendia

 

User Characteristics:  “Passionate Professional“

Male, Age 33

Position: Executive Director (immediate supervisor on site)

From: Honduras

Has worked at Morningside for 10 years.

 

What is this person about – what drives him/her?  

• Roger is motivated by his late grandmother who suffered from dementia. He understands the difficulties that the disease places on the family and wants to be a trustworthy person that people can bring their family members to.

 

Memorable quote from interview: “Everybody knows someone with a horrible experience at a Nursing Home. I need to gain people’s trust so they know we will take good care of their family member.”

 

Top 3 Learnings:

1. People with dementia understand that something is wrong but can’t fully understand it and are therefore uncomfortable with it. They thrive on routines and rely on the structure they provide.
2. Music provides a therapeutic way to recall past memories.
3. Learned of the intricacies and many necessary considerations in considering and selecting a nursing home for a family member.

   

Key Insight

• Reading, puzzles/games, socialization, etc. are incredibly important for maintaining and improving mental sharpness.

 

ACTIVITIES:

• Runs daily operations at Morningside

 

ENVIRONMENT:

• Morningside Memory Care Center
• Home

 

INTERACTIONS:

• Interacts with residents
• Interacts with nurses
• Organizes different aspects of Morningside

 

OBJECTS:

• Office
• Security system at Morningside

 

USERS:

• Family
• Nurses
• Residents
• Administrators of other facilities
• Families of residents
• Other staff members

Immersion – A day in the life of a Morningside resident (Using the 5 “E” Framework)

 

For my immersion, I went to the Morningside Memory Care Center with Chas. There we got to see the facility and learn what life is like for residents at Morningside.

 

ENTICE

• Morningside provides patrons with cognitive stimulation, physical/occupational/speech therapy, medication management, etc.
• The facility is peaceful, quiet, and secure.
• The staff provide them with a structured life with many built in routines that involve enjoyable activities such as television, live music, fun games, etc.
• Roger works hard to be a very trustworthy ambassador for families to feel comfortable having their relative stay there.

 

ENTER

• Morningside is for the elderly population who are at some stage of the dementia or Alzheimer’s spectrum.
• These people are often transferred into Morningside from either another assisted-living center, a hospital, or their home when the required level of care for the person becomes more than the original caregiver is able to provide.

 

ENGAGE

• Each morning, residents wake up and get breakfast at 8am. They also have the option to have breakfast catered to them at a different time if they so choose.
• After breakfast, they go through some light range-of-motion-type physical therapy and play some trivia or listen to music to stimulate the mind and initiate pleasant memories.
  • Activities are changed every 30 minutes since the attention span of dementia patients is very low.
• Residents then get lunch followed with some quiet free time for them to rest.
• At around 4:30pm they do another activity before 5:30pm dinner.
• After dinner they are sent off to do whatever activities they would like until bed.
  • Residents are given consistent routines in order to give them structure and stability in their lives but are also given significant amounts of autonomy and decision-making based on their personal preferences.

 

EXIT

• Residents may leave Morningside when their family chooses to withdraw them from the facility.
• In some cases, residents leave Morningside when they succumb to their illnesses.

 

EXTEND

• In most cases, Morningside is how people with severe dementia spend the end of their lives.
• In some cases, residents will transfer to different skilled-nursing facilities or back to the home.

 

Takeaways

• Residents need routines to keep stability in their lives.
• Residents also enjoy the ability to make some decisions.
• Activities such as puzzles, games, reading, trivia, etc. prove to be mentally stimulating.
• Music seems to have the ability to revive old memories and old habits and is very therapeutic.

Freshman year of college is analogous to retirement since it is a transitional stage of life. Although freshman year of college adds more stress and work to your life, people also gain a sense of freedom compared to living with their parents beforehand. One will learn several new things about themself in college, and new retirees will get to do what they want given the resources, which emphasizes their true passions and goals. People can also choose what communities to be in and begin new hobbies and interests. Students also find friends that stay in their lives even through retirement. These are stages in life that people cannot avoid, so they prepare in several different ways to make the stages better.

Notre Dame Freshman Class of 2014:

• 2,010 students
• 110 international students, and is one of the most diverse classes in the history of ND
• Average student must travel 900 miles to campus
• Top 15 university
• Jobs include: professors, administration, the President of the University, various hall staff positions, St. Liam’s employees

 

Key Takeaways:

• A new sense of freedom can result in positives and negatives. While freedom allows people to pursue their goals and favorite hobbies, it can also lead to unhealthy habits and a sense of loneliness.
• Entering a new stage of life brings new relationships with a diverse set of people. Getting outside of your comfort zone may be challenging at first, but noticing that change can be a good thing early on makes the experience more pleasant.
• Joining specific communities can bring a purpose to your life and new people that you share interests with.
• Training your mental and physical health will improve your life in the short term and long term, and at the end of the day it is the student’s or new retiree’s responsibility to maintain their health and stay informed about it.
• Utilizing the resources around you, such as professors, career advisors, or various doctors, will help you stay informed on how to live a good life. Transitional stages of life almost always require help from others, and it is important to accept that you should not be alone through them. This holds true even if what the resources are saying something other than what you want to hear.

Great job team!  Love the photo!  I envision you all just enjoying a SMASH burger before that photo was taken.   And I particularly appreciate the size of the images.  Please remind me to have you share your process with the class today.