A NEW sensory garden and upgraded lounge area are helping dementia patients feel more at home at Redland Hospital.
Executive director Susan Freiberg said the garden's design was modelled on a domestic backyard to reinforce security and familiarity for patients, and to provide therapy over the coming years.
The area, which features a pond filled with colourful fish, is located in the centre of the hospital grounds.
"Our consumer advisors have played an important role in providing design advice to support our new dementia friendly environments," Ms Freiberg said.
"The sensory garden adjacent to the patient lounge was a collaboration between these consumers, a University of Queensland Dementia Research Fellow, the hospital auxiliary, our gardeners and the Forget Me Not working group, dedicated to improving care for patients with dementia who are admitted to Redland Hospital."
Ms Freiberg said the patient lounge was now a larger, more open space, encouraging patients to leave their rooms and engage in social activities.
"In the future (it) will be the focus of organised group activities supported by our Eat Walk Engage initiatives and Sunflower volunteers," she said.
"We were able to repaint areas to support visual contrast, install picture signs for wayfinding to bathroom facilities and extend the patient lounge with a new corridor doorway, which has reduced the noise and traffic through the ward."
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