The dementia nursing home in Aalborg creates a safe, familiar environment

The Dementia Nursing Home of the Future takes care of people in the City of Aalborg who are suffering from severe dementia. It offers them a place to live, where they can receive specialist treatment, rehabilitation and care. The goal of the project was to create a safe environment for sensorily and socially frail individuals, creating value in the lives of the people suffering from severe dementia and their close networks. In a domestic setting and with a focus on clarity, familiarity and simple structure, the residents are guided and supported as they try to cope with everyday life.

We created a village of small individual houses with no apparent institutional feel, and of large outdoor areas providing the option of various activities, which help improve the residents’ mental and physical health. The residents also have an opportunity for meaningful communal activities in the form of different clubs, where social communities can be established, adding content and value to the lives of the residents. In interaction with the garden, the building’s physical environment embraces a sense of community, while giving each individual a feeling of something personal and meaningful. Every element of the nursing home was conceived on the basis of the world of people with dementia: from the individual dwellings and the sense of community around the residential units to the outdoor areas and the service centre. The physical environment supports the treatment and care, and creates a setting for the satisfaction and well being of any individual suffering from dementia.

The project was the result of the latest research, which shows that well-designed environments play a major role in terms of our well being. It was also essential to create conditions for a good, highly efficient workplace for the staff.