GSA Daily Staff Report
Published June 17, 2010

Linville Courts, an assisted-living, skilled-nursing and Alzheimer’s-care building located on the Cascades Verdae campus in Greenville, has introduced two new programs for memory-care residents.

Waves and Oasis are designed to improve resident engagement, which may have an impact on physical health by improving appetite and sleeping patterns. The programs are also designed to increase lower-body strength which is a key indicator of a resident’s ability to perform activities of daily living such as bathing and dressing without the help of a health care professional.

Waves is one of six programs which make up Oasis, Linville Courts’ memory care programming. In addition to Waves, Oasis consists of a chair-based exercise class, an indoor/outdoor gardening program, community outings, educational classes, a sensory-driven art program and a baking and cooking program.

Waves combines the therapeutic benefits of warm water with low-impact, aerobic exercise as residents are safely guided through movements by assigned caregivers. The program recently received national recognition from the Assisted Living Federation of America as a 2010 Best of the Best award winner.

Executive Director Karen Nichols believes it’s a unique way to improve outcomes for an under served population.

“We try to do things differently here,” she said. “Our focus remains on offering proactive solutions and helping the person, not being reactive and responding to the disease. Several studies have found a connection between moderate exercise and cognitive activity, and increased socialization has been proven to improve mood and self-esteem.”