The love and dedication shown by young nurses and welfare workers towards their clients in the Lucia nursing home for residents with dementia, almost makes up for the lack of funding that health care has had to deal with over the last few years.

The Lucia Nursing Home in Breda is a psycho-geriatric centre for the nursing, care and treatment of elderly clients with Alzheimer.

By cleverly organising the care, a lot of the work that used to be done by qualified nurses is now carried out by therapeutic recreation workers. As a result, more care can be given on the same budget.

A lot of time is bestowed on motivating and stimulating the residents. Activities are organised in recreation rooms, e.g. regular visits by children from a nearby infant school, performances by artists, cooking meals together, making flower arrangements, etc. In addition, spontaneous events and activities occur in the living units.

Given the nature of their disorder, these elderly people do not set high demands on their surroundings or quality of life. That is why the relentless efforts to stimulate and motivate this group are all the more awe-inspiring.