West Lake Terrace helps couples stay together
Thursday January 17, 2008 -- Deron Hamel
Having couples living together in a long-term care home requires staff members to be especially cautious and sensitive to privacy issues and respecting a couple’s marriage, says Mary Lynn Lester, administrator and director of care at West Lake Terrace.

Although there are no couples currently residing at the Picton long-term care home, Lester says the home has had several in the past. And while there haven’t been as many couples living in the home in recent years, she notes that when couples move into long-term care together, it bodes well for everyone.

“It’s very rewarding to have both of (the spouses) here together, and it’s especially heartwarming when you see one that really needs to come and one that doesn’t (but) comes anyway, just so the other one’s not left alone,” she says. “I don’t believe that couples should be separated.”

Often, when a couple move into long-term care together, one spouse will be much more cognitively well than their partner. In these instances, Lester says the spouse who is more cognitively well plays a major part in the care of their partner.

In many cases, it’s a continuation of the care they gave their spouse before moving into long-term care, says Lester.

“They can be a real help because they’ll often do the intervening that they’ve done at home, they just need more help themselves,” she says. “For cognitively-unwell people, it really makes a big difference to have that other person there.”

Staff members need to be especially respectful of privacy issues when there are couples living in the same room. Additionally, Lester says caregivers need to be sensitive when it comes to intervening with the care of one half of the couple. For example, if a man has been caring for his wife for many years, he may be wary of procedures used in a long-term care setting.

Instead, Lester encourages staff members to involve the spouse of a partner in caring for their loved one.

“You really have to go slow and low and present it as ‘we are a team caring for your spouse,’” she says.