June 4, 2019
Akhila Suresh, a therapy assistant with recreation, guides Helen Martha Wiebe, a long-term care resident at Three Hills Health Centre, with her fidget-quilt activity. Suresh also assists her with group activities and daily one-on-one services.
Story by Yolanda Genu | Photo by Dorothy Nielsen
THREE HILLS — A quilt can warm the body and comfort the soul, but some very special quilts at Three Hills Health Centre are doing much more to calm and amuse long-term residents here.
The beginnings of a wonderful partnership between the community and the centre were stitched together a year ago when Beverly McIver, a member of the Pieceful Stitchers Quilters Guild, first approached Andrea Palahniuk, then an occupational therapist at the centre, about making fidget quilts for residents.
“I watched my sister-in-law, a resident at a local long-term care facility who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, fidget constantly with her hands. She always seemed anxious and unsettled,” says McIver.
After hearing about the calming effects of fidget quilts — placemat-sized mini-quilts which please the eye with bright colours and offer activities for the hands — she wondered whether one would help her sister-in-law. Taking the idea one step further, she thought that if Pieceful Stitchers made a dozen, they might help more people in the community who live with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
McIver presented the idea to the group, who accepted it as their 2018-2019 community project. McIver then did her research, eventually creating a fidget quilt, which she showed to Palahniuk, who helped her fine-tune it to the residents’ needs.
“The quilts are a welcome addition to the facility, and they have enhanced the residents’ quality of life,” says Palahniuk. “They help with anxiety management. It’s an outlet for residents, and they can regulate themselves.”
Since members of the Pieceful Stitchers also know many of the residents, they personalized some of the fidget quilts, which have buckles, pockets, buttons, beads and other items that can be moved. Quilts created for women may be soft with feminine features like eye-pleasing colours, while quilts geared to men may feature items like bolts, washers and keys. A few even feature a fun maze activity.
The quilts can be used at a table, on one’s lap, or in a wheelchair, and have a flannel backing to keep them from sliding off a resident’s lap. As well, they’re portable and can be used independently.
Once the Stitchers put needle to cloth, members created 16 fidget quilts in under a month.
“Once we got started, we got really creative,” says Cathy Hazel, president of Pieceful Stitchers. “I think what we all did was great. The quilts are durable, washable and residents will get plenty of use.”
“The familiar objects, textures and patterns designed into the quilts can awaken memories and help residents recall stories and events from their past,” says Dorothy Nielsen, manager of seniors healthcare.
“This can be very comforting for them. That was very thoughtful of the quilters. Every single one is unique — 16 different designers, 16 different designs.”
Nielsen adds that the quilts have been a hit with residents.
The Pieceful Stitchers regularly donate quilts to people with terminal illness or who have experienced loss.
Both Hazel and McIver say the project is touching lives across Three Hills and Kneehill County.
“It was satisfying to see the finished quilts on the wall at the presentation,” says Hazel, “and we hope residents and their families feel the extra-special care from people in the community.”
Nielsen adds: “The donation is a great benefit to the residents and brings the community together in a lovely way. You can’t buy anything this unique. The group has the best intentions with their unique gifts to the residents. There was a lot of love, compassion and attention to detail.”
