France is taking a revolutionary step in treating citizens who have Alzheimer’s disease. In order to combat the 6th leading cause of death in the United States, France came up with the idea of building a specially designed Alzheimer’s Care Facility. The Facility is designed to look like any other village and will allow patients with progressive memory loss to live their lives freely.
The specially designed village will be located in Dax near the border with Spain. The new city will have its own health center, supermarket, hair salon and spa, gym, library, shopping establishments, and farm to sustain the needs of their residents.
The patients will be referred to as residents and have the freedom to roam around freely as they carry on their regular lives. However, the village will also feature a protective enclosure to protect some of their more vulnerable residents.
Plus, the medical staff, doctors, and nurses will wear plain clothes and will be encouraged to give out less medication. And volunteers are also encouraged to help ensure that the city-in-progress stays alive and kicking!
The developers allocated 29 million euros (roughly 32.5 million USD) to make their plans a reality. They hope that the new village will help people with Alzheimer’s and dementia lead more active and happier lives. The new village will be able to accommodate 120 residents, 100 care staff, and 120 volunteers. The village will also have service dogs trained to help their future residents escape their psychological isolation.
The village will cater to meet the unique needs of those with Alzheimer’s and accommodate people who have difficulty walking, sensing the right direction, accessing their memories.
“We hope that the patients will be less constrained and anxious, happier. The same goes for the medical staff.” Françoise Diris, president of the France Alzheimer Landes association, shared their vision. “We hope patients will be happier.”
For folks struggling with Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, trying to lead a regular life can be very difficult. The fast-moving illness doesn’t just make one forget; it also disconnects the patient from responding to their environment.
As of today, there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s disease. However, various treatments, such as what France has in mind, can be used to maximize the quality of life for those living with Alzheimer’s. Interestingly, France’s newest project was inspired by a similarly designed village located in Weesp, Netherlands which was developed by the late Henri Emmanuelli.
This revolutionary approach seeks to find out if patients will respond better to this type of environment rather than being confined in nursing homes. Those behind the project believe that this specially-designed village could pioneer a new way of treating Alzheimer’s patients. If successful, it will allow residents to live fuller and more active lives with less drug medication.
It was also very thoughtful of the people behind this project to use a traditional historical design for the village instead of a modern one. They knew that using modern architecture could confuse their residents with Alzheimer’s, which is why they chose something more familiar.
The village project for those with Alzheimer’s began construction last May. With any luck, this initiative may genuinely help alleviate the sufferings of people living with this terrible disease.
What do you think about France’s Alzheimer’s village? Is it something the United States should consider? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and be sure to share this article with your friends and family.