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Create an Expectancy of Engagement
Let’s expect staff to engage you as householders every chance they get. Let’s expect them to make interactions interesting, even exciting. For instance, instead of staff walking by a householder watching “The Price is Right,” they could jump in front and play the part of the game’s host, or ask what the person thinks of that price!
Another example is the staff member observed leading a cooking group with persons living with dementia. Every move she made turned into engagement. “What do I have here? An egg. What do we do with eggs? What is your favorite egg dish? Did any of you live on a farm? Did any of you have to gather eggs? What was that like?” She could have simply cracked the egg into the bowl and moved on to the next item, but she drew residents into the process.
If you’re serious about engaging people, consider including it on employee performance plans. It will convey the importance of engagement and more importantly will bring about a lively daily home life for all.
Community Learning Circle Questions
On a scale of 1 to 10 – Do you feel engaged? Ten is very much; a rating of one is not at all. Give us a score and tell us why.
Staff Learning Circle Questions
Staff members, do you feel you can become engaged or is your work holding you back? How would you like for it to be different?
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