Tag: dementia care

Music can do more than entertain, it can create connection, reflection and even healing. In a recent episode of Varsity’s Roundtable Talk, we talked with Stuart Malina, longtime Music Director and Conductor of the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra and Tony Award-winning orchestrator.

In the conversation, Stuart discussed why music often resonates more deeply as we age, how live concerts create powerful shared experiences and the surprising ways music can unlock memory and emotion. Stuart also reflects on working with Billy Joel and Twyla Tharp on Broadway’s Moving Out and shares advice about creativity, confidence and defining success for yourself.

Check out the full episode here.

WHAT HAVE YOU OBSERVED ABOUT HOW PEOPLE’S RELATIONSHIP WITH MUSIC CHANGES AS THEY AGE?

The core audience of classical music is older. I would say probably averaging somewhere in the upper 60s to lower 70s. I don’t think this is a coincidence. I think that there is something about classical music that resonates perhaps a little bit more intensely with older audiences. Music speaks to everybody, but as you get older, different kinds of music will bring responses. 

I speak to a lot of people who say the same thing: I grew up and I loved the pop music of my time, and of course I still do. But now I’m beginning to understand this music a little bit better and it speaks to my heart.

WHY DO YOU THINK MUSIC BECOMES MORE MEANINGFUL LATER IN LIFE?

If there is wisdom, it’s just kind of being able to look at life with a little bit more grand perspective, and I do think that might be part of why there’s a response to not just music, but any kind of great art as you get older. 

I also think that part of it is patience. As you get older, I do think there is a greater ability to just sit back and enjoy a journey. So much of classical music is just allowing yourself to enjoy the progression of an emotional arc or the progression of a beautiful long phrase. And I do think that comes a little bit more easily when you’re older. But the last thing might even be just a practical issue, that older people just have a little bit more time.

RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT MUSIC CAN SUPPORT MEMORY, MOOD, AND BRAIN HEALTH. DOES THAT ALIGN WITH WHAT YOU’VE SEEN PERSONALLY?

I actually think that music is unbelievably powerful. I do think that music speaks to parts of the brain that you can’t reach in other ways. We have a great friend of the orchestra who brought her husband to concerts. He was suffering from very severe Alzheimer’s, to the degree where he really couldn’t remember anything and he didn’t remember who people were. 

She brought him to the concerts because when he walked in the concert hall, suddenly he was who he was before. He was recognizing members of the orchestra. And she said that for that one hour and 45 minutes or two hours, he was himself again. And then they would leave and it would be back to his old world. So something’s going on there. 

Dementia care is too often framed around what’s lost—memory, independence, identity—when in reality, the opportunity lies in recognizing what remains and how people continue to adapt. Shifting that perspective doesn’t just change care outcomes, it changes how teams communicate, how organizations train staff, and how families stay connected through moments that might otherwise feel overwhelming.

That was the focus of a recent conversation on Varsity’s weekly Roundtable, where we welcomed Teepa Snow, founder of Positive Approach to Care®. Known for her practical, human-centered approach, Teepa shared how reframing dementia from decline to ability can unlock better interactions, stronger relationships and more effective support systems across senior living. Below are a few Fresh Perspectives from her discussion.

PEOPLE DON’T STOP, THEY SHIFT

Dementia doesn’t mean someone is doing less, it means they’re doing things differently. When one pathway breaks down, the brain adapts and finds another way forward.

BEHAVIOR IS COMMUNICATION, NOT DISRUPTION

What looks like repetition, frustration or withdrawal is often a person trying to communicate, stay engaged or solve a problem without the tools they once had.

DEMENTIA ISN’T JUST MEMORY

When we treat dementia as forgetfulness alone, we miss the broader signs like language loss, confusion or physical changes and delay the support that could make a difference.

HOW YOU SHOW UP CHANGES EVERYTHING

The difference between resistance and cooperation often comes down to approach. Directing and correcting creates tension, while partnering builds trust and keeps interactions human.

SUPPORT STARTS WITH CURIOSITY

The strongest care doesn’t assume it understands the situation. It asks what’s working, what’s not and meets people where they are to tailor support that actually helps.

SKILL IS THE MISSING INFRASTRUCTURE

Dementia care isn’t something people just “figure out.” Without training, coaching and real-time reinforcement, even good intentions can lead to frustration and breakdowns in care.

Varsity’s Roundtable is a weekly virtual gathering of senior living marketers and leaders from across the nation. For updates about future weekly Roundtable gatherings, submit your name and email address here. 

Dementia is often defined by what people lose, but a more helpful question is what abilities remain. In a recent episode of Varsity’s Roundtable Talk, Derek sat down with Teepa Snow, occupational therapist, educator and founder of Positive Approach to Care, one of the most influential voices in dementia care.

Their conversation explored why fear still shapes public perceptions of dementia, how communication must adapt as brain changes occur and why Snow prefers the term “care partner” over caregiver. She also discusses caregiver burnout and the importance of building stronger community support around people living with dementia. The following are some fresh perspectives from their conversation. Check out the full episode here. 

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO TAKE A POSITIVE APPROACH TO DEMENTIA CARE?

Well, in my experience, I can’t use what you can’t do. It’s not possible. What I can do is engage with you and see what you have. And that’s where we can come into a relationship and I can work with you. I need to tune in to the reality of who you are now, not just who you were and what you’re capable of, because that’s what we have to work with and come together with.

WHY IS FEAR STILL THE DOMINANT EMOTION PEOPLE ASSOCIATE WITH DEMENTIA?

I think human beings, as a rule, like the predictable. They like once they master something, they don’t have to think about it so much. And I think what dementia does is rob us of our knowingness. It forces us back into a space of paying attention, being observant. The reality is dementia is ever changing. You don’t get to relax into routine. You have to stay alert, and maybe people don’t want to be on the job so much.

WHAT MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT DEMENTIA DO THE MOST HARM?

The idea that everybody experiences the same kind of losses and changes in the same order. Alzheimer’s tends to take the front seat, but if I’m living with Lewy body or vascular dementia, my symptoms may be very different. It pays to get a pattern established of what I’m living with and how it’s going. And people also think it only happens to older adults and that it’s all about memory. Memory is just this much. There’s a whole lot more going on.

HOW EARLY SHOULD PEOPLE START LEARNING ABOUT BRAIN HEALTH AND CHANGE?

I would like us to learn more about brain health and wellness when we’re younger. Kids know their body parts, but they don’t know the brain parts, and those are super important. If I know how my brain’s supposed to work, then I can notice when it’s doing something unusual. We tend to wait until there’s so much evidence something isn’t going well, and by then we’re past screening and dealing with significant change.

WHY DO YOU PREFER THE TERM “CARE PARTNER” OVER “CAREGIVER”

I believe there is no care about me without me. It’s time to quit treating someone living with dementia like they’re a football and we’re passing them around. It’s their life, their care. I’ve got to figure out how to work with that human being. I can’t just give care because if I give it, you have to receive it. If you don’t want it, you don’t want it. So I have to partner with you.

WHAT ARE EARLY SIGNS OF CARE PARTNER BURNOUT?

If I were to ask you to tell me three things you’ve done today for yourself and you can’t, that’s a sign. If you can’t tell me something you feel good about in your relationship or something that brings you pleasure, it’s time to have a conversation. We don’t train people for this work. We drop them into it and they keep going until they drop. We need to build community around this, not expect one person to carry it all.

Want to hear more from Teepa? Check out the full episode of Roundtable Talk for more fresh perspectives. Watch new episodes of Roundtable Talk on the Varsity website and on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio.

QUOTES

“I can’t use what you can’t do. What I can do is engage with you and see what you have. That’s where we can come into a relationship and work together.” (Teepa)

“When you’ve lost something, your brain doesn’t give up. Your brain picks something else to use.” (Teepa)

“Dementia robs us of our knowingness. It forces us back into paying attention and being observant because it’s always changing.” (Teepa)

“I need to tune in to the reality of who you are now, not just who you were and what you used to be capable of.” (Teepa)

“People think dementia is all about memory, but memory is this much. There’s all this other stuff going on.” (Teepa)

“The relationship is going to change dramatically. Living with brain change is hard whether you’re on the inside of it or the outside observing it.” (Teepa)

“My job is not to decide that someone is suffering. My job is to figure out how to support you through what you’re going through.” (Teepa)

“I believe there is no care about me without me. It’s their life and their care, and I have to figure out how to partner with them in it.” (Teepa)

“The reality is they’re not less, they’re different. Their brain works differently, but they’re still living life.” (Teepa)

“Eighty percent or more of this work is done by unpaid people like family and friends, and we don’t train them. We just drop them into it and they keep going until they drop.” (Teepa)

“We need at least three people, maybe five or more. We need to build community around this condition.” (Teepa)

NOTES

Teepa Snow is an occupational therapist, educator and one of the most recognized voices in dementia care. She is known for helping families, care partners and senior living professionals better understand brain change and build more meaningful connections with people living with dementia.

Snow is the founder of Positive Approach to Care, an organization focused on improving dementia care through training, education and practical support strategies. The organization works with families, senior living providers and healthcare professionals around the world to build skills and confidence in supporting people experiencing brain change.

Through Positive Approach to Care and the Snow Approach Foundation, Teepa and her team provide training programs, professional education and community-based demonstrations designed to improve dementia care practices. Her work emphasizes practical communication techniques, recognizing remaining abilities and building supportive communities around people living with dementia. Her programs now reach professionals and families across the United States, Canada and more than two dozen countries.

A positive approach to dementia care focuses on what abilities remain rather than what has been lost, meeting people where they are and building connection through observation, tone, body language and supportive communication.

Fear often dominates public perceptions of dementia because the condition disrupts routines and predictability, forcing family members and care partners to stay attentive and adapt constantly as abilities change.

Dementia is often misunderstood as primarily a memory problem affecting older adults, but brain change can involve many other cognitive functions and can also appear earlier in life depending on the type of dementia.

Communication challenges arise because people living with dementia may struggle to retain new information, making it important for care partners to simplify questions, provide visual cues and offer structured choices rather than open-ended requests.

Care partners often experience burnout because most dementia support is provided by unpaid family members who receive little training or preparation for the emotional and practical demands of caregiving.

Snow encourages replacing the term “caregiver” with “care partner,” emphasizing that the person living with dementia remains the central decision-maker in their own life and that support should be collaborative rather than controlling.

Effective dementia care requires broader community support systems, with multiple people sharing responsibility rather than placing the entire burden on a single family member.

Senior living organizations can improve dementia support by training staff to recognize individual histories, preferences and abilities, allowing residents to continue experiencing purpose, independence and meaningful engagement even as cognitive abilities change.