An old-age simulator tested by employees of an Ehpad in Rochefort

The employees of the DomusVi nursing home in Rochefort had a funny experience on Monday, March 22. Regular staff who assist seniors on a daily basis were able to slip into their skin for a while.

To understand the difficulties that our seniors go through on a daily basis, they tried an old age simulator. Agnès Ricquebourg, from the Domitys senior residences, runs the workshops. The goal: to help employees put themselves in their patients’ shoes.

A combination as if to enter the body of an elderly person

The employees put on a 25-kilo combination: gloves, vest and helmet on their heads, everything is done to feel the weight of age. “I can no longer write correctly“, explains a caregiver who struggles to sign a document. “It’s normal”, Agnès replies. “Seniors lose their sense of touch“, she specifies.

The workshop is divided into two parts. The first is to perform small everyday tasks with the suit. Simple things like opening a small jar of jam suddenly get complicated. The second step is to sit up while lying in a bed, again, caregivers realize the difficulty of standing up with the weight of the belt.

After trying it, Marion Richard, occupational therapist at the DomusVi nursing home, promised to change some of her habits. She admits that she has become more aware of the difficulties presented by certain simple gestures. “We always tell them, come on! make a little effort! “, she explains. Finally, the young caregiver promises to try to stimulate the seniors less when they are really not able to make a physical effort.

Like Marion, a dozen other employees tested the simulator that day. Other similar workshops are planned in the coming days.

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