Right at Home Announces Proprietary RightCare Approach to Improve Quality of Life for Clients Living With Dementia and Cognitive Change

OMAHA, Neb., Nov. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- A staggering 47.5 million people currently live with a form of dementia.¹ Dementia and cognitive change often affect a person's ability to perform everyday tasks such as dressing, personal hygiene, eating and managing personal finances. Dementia and cognitive change also impact communication and relationships with loved ones. It is not uncommon for someone with dementia or cognitive change to become irritable or withdrawn, often leaving loved ones confused, fearful, angry, sad or uncertain. Moreover, watching a loved one's abilities change is an incredibly challenging experience for families. With the launch of their proprietary RightCare approach to dementia and cognitive support, Right at Home is committed to not only helping families interact with loved ones based on their current abilities, but also to supporting families to reconnect with loved ones, rather than simply to be family caregivers.

As a leading international franchise with 550 locations globally, Right at Home benefits from being able to take learnings and best practices conceived and implemented by local franchisees and caregivers around the world to strengthen the care and support offered to clients everywhere. In 2014, two Right at Home U.K. franchisees identified a critical market need for improved dementia and cognitive support. To fulfill this need, Alastair Shanks and Tim Haigh conceived a cognitive support program focusing on the abilities of their clients, rather than on their perceived disabilities, that was piloted by Right at Home U.K.

Recognizing the positive impact this approach might have on the families Right at Home serves not only in the U.K. and the U.S., but also across each of its global markets, the franchise devoted two years to adopting and scaling the approach in order to support global integration. The abilities-driven, person-centered RightCare approach to dementia and cognitive support is being piloted this winter in nearly 100 offices across Right at Home's global network.

"Right at Home's approach to dementia and cognitive support is anchored in our mission: to improve the quality of life for those we serve," said Brian Petranick, CEO and president of Right at Home. "We serve seniors and adults with disabilities, but we also serve the families of our clients. Our goal with this approach is to support clients and educate families so loved ones may live at home, independently, for as long as possible."

Right at Home's proprietary RightCare approach to dementia and cognitive support was created in collaboration with Jackie Pool, an occupational therapist and leading dementia support expert in the U.K. The approach focuses on minimizing symptoms of dementia or cognitive change and accounts for three components — ability, personhood and lifestyle — to create individualized plans that are delivered by certified cognitive support program providers who have received at least 12 hours of specialized training.

To determine ability, Right at Home uses a scientifically proven and validated assessment, then partners with the client and family to establish goals and create meaningful activities to achieve those goals, all of which result in a highly individualized plan that guides the care for the client. 

"This approach is different from anything that exists in our space," said Shannon Mitchell, an international support manager for Right at Home who has managed the global adoption and implementation of the approach. "The RightCare approach to dementia and cognitive support allows Right at Home to give clients living with dementia or cognitive change choices in their care, to protect their dignity; we're giving them the opportunity to continue to be who they are as a person to the best of their ability for as long as possible."

The RightCare approach to dementia and cognitive support aims to empower clients by helping them maintain their sense of self through setting and reaching goals, and to actively engage clients in their own care. The program also educates families by providing them with the knowledge needed to encourage their loved ones.

"This new approach to dementia care and cognitive support is a subtle, yet dynamic shift that goes beyond simply providing care," said Mitchell. "It certainly allows us to improve the quality of life for the clients we serve every day. But the RightCare approach takes it a step further and does the same for families. This approach allows Right at Home to offer person-centered, abilities-driven coaching and education to a family so they can reconnect with their loved one in a new way that is based on their loved one's ability level, to continue the meaningful relationships a family holds so valuable and that are often strained as a result of cognitive change. As a family caregiver to my grandmother who passed away last year, this is incredibly powerful."

ABOUT RIGHT AT HOME:
Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship and personal care and assistance to seniors and adults with a disability who want to continue to live independently. Local Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff, each of whom is thoroughly screened, trained, and bonded/insured prior to entering a client's home. Right at Home's global office is based in Omaha, Nebraska, with more than 500 franchise locations in the U.S. and seven other countries. For more information on Right at Home, visit About Right at Home at http://www.rightathome.net/about-us or read the Right at Home franchising blog at http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/blog/. To learn more about franchising opportunities, please visit http://www.rightathomefranchise.com/.

¹ According to research by the World Health Organization (WHO)

Media Contact:
Lauren Kaminski
No Limit Agency
312-526-3996
[email protected] 

SOURCE Right at Home

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