I've been seeing lots of people post about the nursing home in the Netherlands that placed decals of dementia patient's old homes on the doors to their rooms, to make them feel at home. But no posts with sources.
The original Netherlands story is about 10 years old. Today, this is no longer about a single nursing home in the Netherlands but about many, many nursing homes across the world. The most well-known company making these stickers is called True Doors, and they are based out of the Netherlands but also operate internationally. And the benefits of the door decals are much bigger than any of the "designed to go viral" posts reveal.
The decals are not only for helping patients with dementia, they're about transforming impersonal hallways and all the positive effects of this. I think if you've ever walked down a hospital corridor, or even a school corridor, you can relate to this.
So yes, they stimulate reminiscence, but also:
* It's obviously much easier to find your own door when they don't all look the same. The whole space becomes familiar, rather than anonymous. More like a neighborhood.
* It's also much easier for staff and visitors to find the right door.
* For staff, the workplace becomes much more welcoming.
* Patients/residents often get to choose their own door from a big catalog. This is more common than replicating a past door, something the viral posts imply. It's more often about being given a chance to express yourself, and creating a sense of ownership, and pride!
* According to one supervisor: adjustment to moving to assisted living goes from 4-6 weeks to 1-2 weeks with a "true door".
The video clips I've attached are from the True Doors many community videos from various installations. Watch and read more stories here: https://www.truedoors.com/community