Bethany Village offers a unique program for its assisted living memory care residents

As a respected continuing care retirement community in Southwest Ohio, it should come as no surprise that Bethany Village embraces the most advanced and unique therapies for its assisted living memory care residents. That includes offering programs that not only enhance the quality of life, but also provide a sense of self-worth, autonomy and dignity for those struggling with memory issues such as dementia or Alzheimer’s.

While many of the programs at Bethany Village are tailored to reach the individual, there is a new program that is quickly becoming a favorite of residents, staff and volunteers alike. And this award-winning, art-making program was created right here in Southwest Ohio at Miami University. It’s called Opening Minds Through Art (OMA).

“OMA is a program centered and based on a no-fail experimental process based on art projects,” explains Jamie Aubin, OMA facilitator and life enrichment coordinator at Bethany Village. “It’s gone over so well with our residents in memory care, but it’s also been very impactful with students and volunteers who are involved in partnering with residents to create art.”

Founded by Dr. Elizabeth “Like” Lokon in 2007 at Miami University, OMA is grounded in person-centered care principles. People with dementia (artists) are paired with volunteers (students, families, caregivers) who are trained to rely on imagination instead of memory and focus on remaining strengths instead of lost skills. OMA enables people with dementia to assume new roles as artists and teachers, while leaving a legacy of beautiful artwork.

“A lot of our residents come from varied backgrounds that don’t necessarily involve art,” says Aubin. “When we started the program and they first sat down to do an art project with me, they looked at the art materials like paints and brushes and probably thought I was crazy.

“But as I picked up a tool and handed it to them, they realized what the tools were for and what they were meant to do. It was almost as if the art sparked a cognizance of what they were supposed to do with the materials and they started painting and creating.”

OMA is just one of the many programs offered to residents at Bethany Village’s newly renovated assisted living memory care community, Pavilion. OMA fits right in with Bethany’s continuing care objectives.

“We design our activity programs around the interests of our residents,” explains Cathy Howard, team lead for Bethany’s life enrichment department and all of memory care, who along with Aubin was trained in OMA by Lokon. “So our programs change quite frequently.

“When residents come in, we set up interviews with the residents as well as their families and caregivers to find out what their past and current interests are. For instance, we had one resident who golfed his entire life. So we purchased putters and a golfing green. Many of our programs change according to how our residents change. They are personally centered to the individual.”

However, the fun and freedom of creating art seems to cut across the myriad backgrounds of Bethany Village residents. It provides a meaningful creative outlet and avenue for expression when other forms of communication become more challenging, while enriching the lives of residents and helping them to enjoy a greater sense of purpose, accomplishment and self-confidence. 

“We actually have an art show every year where we display the creations of our residents,” says Aubin. “And some of their works will really blow you away.”