Care villa nears the finish line

COSTERFIELD House, the Heathcote Dementia Alliance’s prototype care villa, arrived at Heathcote Health in late April.

Since then, a steady stream of trades people and volunteers has been working to transform the building from lock-up stage to fully fitted dementia care accommodation.

HDA’s founder and president Sandra Slatter said the team were on track to complete the job by the first week in August.

“The builder has been in, and all the plastering has been done,” she said. “The electrical fit out, the feature wall and the waterproofing in the bathroom have been done too.

“The kitchen has been designed and will arrive on the 24th of July, along with the wardrobe and other cabinetry.”

Costerfield House will be used as an educational resource for the public and to raise awareness about developments in this area of dementia care provision.

The villa has been designed to provide an optimal residential environment for those living with dementia and to allow them to remain in their home environment for longer, particularly on rural properties.

“We’ve had a lot of support,” Ms Slatter said. “Wattyl paints donated all the paint for us and they’re working with us to create a dementia colour palette.

“It’s not about the actual colour though, it’s about the contrast and it has to be at least 30 per cent.

“With Costerfield House we’re painting it virtually all white because we don’t want people to walk in and think you need to have it a particular colour.”

The villa will incorporate a range of technologies including circadian lighting and automatic blinds.

“You’ll step in through a card-activated door, the lights will come on, the blinds will operate, and the TV will turn on,” Ms Slatter said.

HDA are hoping to attract widespread interest which will help the care villa project grow in the longer term.

“The ABC have been following us and they’re putting together a big story, so we’re hoping that will help with recognition,” Ms Slatter said.

“We’re going to hold off on the official opening, Costerfield House will be open for individuals if they want to come and have a look, but we’re planning a really big celebration for a bit later in the year.”

The care villa project has been supported by several funding sources including money raised during the O’Keefe Challenge.

“We need to mention Mandalay Resources in particular,” Ms Slatter said. “Their support has been incredible, they’ve been behind us 100 per cent.

“We were needing funding to cut the cost of a specially designed kitchen and they came on board to help out with that.”