The De Hogeweyk model
De Hogeweyk is an aged care village in The Netherlands where all residents have dementia. The focus of care highlights what residents can do, not what they can’t.
De Hogeweyk’s view on care is entrenched in day-to-day life in society. In normal society, living means having your own space to live and having the autonomy to manage your own household.
People live with other people sharing the same ideas and values in life. This makes the place where one lives a home.
De Hogeweyk residents have already lived a life where they shaped their own path; where they made choices about their own household and standards. The fact that a dementia resident cannot function “normally” in certain areas doesn’t mean they can’t have a valid opinion on their day-to-day life and surroundings.
Every house manages its own household with a permanent staff. A normal house in a normal village in a secure environment gives the residents of De Hogeweyk this freedom in safety.
The nurses and carers aim to make the experience as real as possible to the residents. Residents with carers do the necessary shopping at the supermarket and assist with preparing and cooking as they would at home. The carers wear normal daytime clothing rather than clinical clothing.
Compared to traditional nursing homes, the residents of De Hogeweyk are more active and require less medication.
A new way forward
Dementia is a group of incurable brain diseases. It starts with forgetting small things and gradually progresses to forgetting your life, with the mind eventually forgetting to tell the body how to work.
This devastating disease physically attacks the brain piece by piece stripping what makes you, you.
Dementia is set to be one of New Zealand’s biggest killers and too many families are facing the cruelness of this tragic illness alone. But together, we can improve care and provide a better way for those living with dementia.
It’s the simple things that make life worth living; the bright smile of a grandchild, the familiar chords of the song you danced to at your wedding, the scent of your favourite flower lingering in the air.
For elderly people with dementia, the world is small. Great deeds no longer count. It’s small comforts which bring joy: a home, a safe place and - if possible - doing what you feel like doing, with the freedom to do so.
Our vision is:
To lead an evolution of aged care in NZ
To replicate everyday community life within a safe, secure and welcoming village
To provide the most normal life as possible, reminiscent of each individual's formative years providing a sense of comfort, security and purpose.
To breakdown the stigma and improve understanding of dementia
To improve our understanding and provide an evidence-based approach.
Led by the not-for-profit Calvary Hospital Southland Foundation, we are transitioning and re-visiting the entire aged care delivery model with newly formed, The Hawthorndale Charitable Trust. The Hawthorndale Care Village is the better way forward.
