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Eating, design and dementia: improving dining in care homes

· Description of the project // how it works

This project aimed to improve dining culture and rituals without changing existing food service infrastructure in nursing homes. The design approach focused on designing a new tableware to promote independent eating and improve the experience of being fed for those who are no longer able to feed themselves

· The context

The project was developed for the using this tableware in care homes, however it can easily be used at home.

· Challenges tackled through design

As dementia progresses, some people can begin to lose their eating skills or find it increasingly difficult to concentrate on the task of eating.

The design of this new range of tableware sets out to achieve a number of goals. It aims to: Highlight specific features that could benefit older people in care. Provide commercially viable solutions that were durable and that could be permanently stocked in care homes. Create a range that matched as a set and formed a complete table setting so that people were not singled out by the objects they had to use. Ensure that solutions maintained a resemblance to domestic tableware so that plates looked like plates and cups which looked like cups. This was essential to ensure that the function of the objects remained clear and obvious for people at the more advanced stages of dementia.

· The design intervention // how design works

The eating skills of residents in the mid to late stages of dementia can be improved and maintained through the use of appropriately designed tableware.

1. Colour contrast for visual impairment

For people with low vision it is important to use plates that create good contrast between both the plate and table and also the food and the plate.

In this example, colour has been applied so that people with low visual acuity can easily locate handle and rim. Additional features include angled sides to reduce the amount the cup has to be tipped. The handle is large enough to be easily gripped and the opening at the top is wide in order to allow a person’s nose to fit inside the cup when it is tipped, thus avoiding excessive head movement.

2. Tableware to reduce complexity

Residents, who are now only using one piece of cutlery, push the food off the side of the plate when they are trying to pick it up. To address this, the plate contains a high lip in its profile that helps to push the food onto the spoon as a person tries to scoop it up. It turns the motion that usually results in food being spilt onto the table into a way of improving eating skills. The range includes a bowl that is designed to allow people to pick it up and drink from it. The rims have been extended to create a vessel that can easily be held with two hands. It aims to further reduce the complexity of eating and support people with limited dexterity.

3. Tableware for assistance

Feeding a resident with dementia presents one of the most challenging tasks in a carer’s day. Ensuring the experience is a positive one for the person being fed requires a great deal of empathy and skill as the act of feeding another person can be a delicate experience.

Each of the assistive pieces in this range has been designed to be easily held by care workers and encourages them to hold the plate in the sensory range of the person they are feeding so that they can see and smell what they are eating. The plate shape allows the carer to orientate it in an ‘offering position’ and draw it under the person’s chin to minimise the risk of spilling. The pieces have been reduced in weight and allow staff to get a good grip so that they do not drop them if the resident grabs hold of the side as can sometimes occur when they want to be more involved in the process. A version of the plate with a central divide is also available for people who require a soft food diet. This ensures that different food groups such as mashed potatoes, mince or mushy peas stay separated and that people can still enjoy the uniqueness of each flavour. The range includes a plate, bowl and lid for cups which can be used to reduce the risk of spilling liquid on those being assisted.

Gaps // how the design could be improved

References: All texts and images taken directly from: https://www.rca.ac.uk/research-innovation/research-centres/helen-hamlyn-centre/research-projects/2010-projects/design-dementia/

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