Architecture For Alzheimer Disease

Dementia presents immense challenges – both for individuals as well as for society as a whole. More than 35 million people all over the world currently live with dementia, a number that is expected to double by 2050. This also has implications for architecture and urban planning because dementia often affects people’s sense of orientation and their ability to perceive space. How can homes, apartments, public buildings, outdoor spaces, neighbourhoods and cities, as well as environments and infrastructure, be designed to meet the needs of people with dementia as well as those of their caregivers? And can a consideration of the problems of dementia lead to a better understanding of space that can improve architecture and the built environment for us all? This book addresses these and other questions in a series of professional essays that examine the specific requirements for different disciplines. In addition, international case study projects illustrate the breadth of current actual solutions. The book is intended as a guide for all those involved in the design and planning process – architects, interior designers, engineers, town planners, local authorities and clients – and as a reader for the users themselves: for people with dementia, their family and friends, and all those in their social environment.

Designing for Alzheimer's Disease offers a complete blueprint for effective design development and implementation, with the full benefit of Elizabeth Brawley's extensive professional background in design for aging environments and her own family's experience with Alzheimer's disease.

This book presents the latest research that shows how design thinking, making, and acting contribute to the co-designing and development of products, spaces, and services with people living with dementia. We know that there is currently no cure for the 130+ kinds of dementia that millions of people live with all over the world, but the designed interventions such as the products, spaces, and services described in this book can address stigma, isolation, loss of confidence, and raise awareness and greater understanding of dementia. This book showcases a range of innovative and creative design interventions that have been developed to break the cycle of well-established opinions, strategies, mindsets, and ways of doing that tend to remain unchallenged in the health and social care of people living with dementia. The book will be of interest to scholars working in product design, service design, experience design, architecture, design research, information design, user-centred design, and design for health.

The thesis will show that when coupled with front-end, in depth research, architecture can provide an environment that improves the lives of not only those suffering from Alzheimer's disease, but the lives of the caregiver(s) and the aging in general. The method of approach will include research of the human sensory system, phenomenology and perception, the study of materials and lighting, observation and study of existing care facilities, and research of existing published guidelines. Issues of daylighting, good lighting design, acoustical support, tactile components, wayfinding, social interaction, orientation, safety, and independence will be investigated as they relate to the sensory system of the Alzheimer's sufferer as well as their relationship to the design of a more comfortable and healthier environment for the patient and the caregiver(s). This thesis has touched on a number of topics, with the most successful topic appearing to be the study of the relationship between the senses and environmental behaviors of the person with Alzheimer's disease. Other successful results were the initial development of the Interactive Memory Wall (IMW) and the Memory Hearth. While architecture cannot solve all issues for the Alzheimer's sufferer, the conclusion will show that there is a real need for continued empirical research in the design of environments for those suffering from Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia and that in order for design to promote well-being for this population, architects must incorporate front-end and in depth research into their design process.

Examines various aspects of the design and function of aged care assisted living facilities. Includes the needs of people with dementia and people from culturally diverse backgrounds.

As our understanding of aging and Alzheimer's, and the cultural changes related to these phenomena, grows so do the implications for interior design. Focus on recent innovations in care environments for the aging with a resource dedicated to this topic. This comprehensive book features: Coverage of the emerging building types of adult day care and hospice and the increased use of gardens and outdoor space in environments for the aging. Material on sustainable design and environmentally friendly building products. Design solutions that extend beyond assisted-living facilities and nursing homes as they can be easily adapted for residential use. Photographs, line drawings, and a 16-page color insert that bring the material to life. Order your copy of this book today.

Design Intervention: Toward a More Humane Architecture, first published in 1991, intends to demonstrate that interest in social issues is alive and well in architecture, that there is a small but effective cadre of dedicated professionals who continue to commit themselves to solving social problems, and that architecture is being applied to the alleviation of the social ills of our time. The editors and contributors in this book have all grappled with their own definitions of design innovation, and express in practical and useful ways their ideas for contributing to a better and less needy world through the architecture they describe. This book will be of interest to students of architecture.