ButterflyEffects.com

On this page, you will find the Butterfly Effects Commitment to Elder Care.
We think it’s important that anyone involved with elder care be familiar with the four major points listed below. Making this commitment moves us a step closer to the paradigm shift needed to take the best care of our loved ones. We hope that family caregivers, professional caregivers, and care facilities will adopt our commitment as their own, or make their own similar commitment.

Butterfly Effects Commitment to Elder Care:

We believe that behavior problems require behavior solutions.
When faced with a challenging behavior or counter-productive resistance, we will always make a thorough attempt to apply a behavior intervention as a first line of treatment.

Even if it becomes medically necessary to use pharmaceuticals to modify a behavior, we will seek to supplement, if not substitute, for the pharmaceutical intervention, with the application of a behavior plan that emphasizes constant encouragement and continuous positive reinforcement.

As caregivers, our role is to facilitate a client's opportunities for inclusion and active participation within his or her family and community.
We recognize that social isolation is especially dangerous for the elderly and will do whatever we can to supply and encourage opportunities for meaningful social involvement.

Furthermore, we will do what we can to help families stay connected and positively involved with one another.

We do not believe that depression is a natural part of aging.
We will monitor those in our care for depression and other mental illnesses and make sure they are attended to in a timely fashion by mental health counselors and through behavioral interventions as needed and appropriate.

The elders in our community should be treated as the valued members that they are and provided with as much opportunity as possible for inclusion, enrichment, and joy.

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Why you should make a similar commitment?

If you are an agency or professional caregiver, accepting the commitment will elevate the quality of your service and let your clients know that you are one of the good ones, professionals who are interested in cutting-edged care, family, and kindness.

If you are a family caregiver, this commitment will help you understand what it is you need to learn and remind you of the dignity and connection that makes any life precious.
   
If you are a family member looking for a care facility, this commitment provides you with litmus test questions to make certain that your loved one is in a facility that will extend the same kind of care that you would.
   
If you are a member of the Butterfly Effects team -- client, family, therapist, or staff -- the commitment is the litmus test against which all of our elder services are measured.

When you think about each of the points, you will see that they are not nearly as radical and dangerous as they are compassionate and sensible.
We can no longer afford the cost of maintaining a medical model for elder care, in terms of the resources it wastes, the relationships it often ignores, and the clients it fails to serve.

You will have to read beyond this page and the commitment to fully understand the reasons behind the main points. And you may have to work hard to change your perspective and your approach to care to be able to live up to such a commitment. But it’s not as hard as you might think, especially since we are here to help you every step of the way.

Nursing Home and Care Facility Support
Help for Family Caregivers