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Auburn nursing home celebrates dolls for residents with dementia

The Citizen - 6/15/2021

Jun. 14—The Commons on St. Anthony in Auburn held a baby shower Wednesday when more than 20 animatronic baby dolls and puppy dolls were delivered for residents with dementia at the Loretto-owned facility.

Residents can now care for the dolls, which have the look, feel and weight of a newborn baby or puppy. Each doll is unique and specifically matched to residents based on connections they share, such as wearing the resident's favorite color. Each resident and their doll will also have a special bracelet with both of their names on it to make recognition easier for the resident and to facilitate infection control.

The dolls, which come from Pearl's Memory Babies, have been shown to have a statistically significant impact on the quality of life of dementia patients. Specifically, they increase smiling and decrease irritable or aggressive behavior.

"Humans are instinctually hardwired to nurture," said Amy Feeney, director of therapeutic recreation and volunteers at The Commons, in a news release. "What becomes difficult as people age is how they can receive the same benefits from having someone — or something — to care for, without having to manage the care. These animatronic babies and pets provide all the benefits without the cost or physical difficulties of caring for a child or pet."

The Auburn facility was nominated by employees and resident family members to receive the dolls from Pearl's, and was selected as one of three winners in a nationwide contest.

For more information, visit lorettocny.org.

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