Sunnyside Home first in Waterloo Region to be accredited the Butterfly Approach®

Waterloo Region – Sunnyside Home Long-Term Care has earned Level 1 “Outstanding”, which is the highest rating from UK, based Meaningful Care Matters. Sunnyside is the first home in Waterloo Region accredited in ‘The Butterfly Approach®’.

“To be certified as a Butterfly Home has been a long time goal for Sunnyside. An Outstanding, Level 1 result is a dream come true,” says Connie Lacy, Director, Seniors’ Services at the Region of Waterloo. “The people who live and work at Sunnyside Home have embraced this world renowned best practice model in dementia care, which supports people to live their best lives. I could not be more proud of the Sunnyside team. This is truly a game changer in quality of dementia care not only in our community, but across Ontario and Canada.”

Two home areas at Sunnyside Home that provide care for people living with dementia have achieved Butterfly accreditation. Each home area has a unique look and feel. The entrances feel like houses in a neighbourhood with brightly coloured front doors, blue sky on the ceiling above, as well as flowers and trees along the walls. Inside, the walls are full of colour, texture and objects that tell the stories of the people living and working there. 

People working in the home take time to learn about the life stories and preferences of the people they care for. Staff support people living in the home to make choices about how they spend their day. This includes whether they wake up early or sleep in, what they eat and how they spend their free time. Snacks and drinks are available and accessible to residents throughout the day. People living and working in the home feel like family and spend time together sharing meaningful moments and connecting with one another.

“To achieve an outstanding Butterfly Accreditation during a pandemic is an incredible achievement and offers hope to the many other long term care settings in Ontario and Canada, who want to spread the Butterfly magic,” says Peter Bewert, Managing Director/CEO of Meaningful Care Matters. “It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with such an inspiring team at Sunnyside.”

Sunnyside Home has observed positive results since the implementation of The Butterfly Approach. This includes a reduction in the use of antipsychotic medications, an increase in staff and resident satisfaction and improved quality of interactions between staff and residents.

The Sunnyside Foundation, The Fabulous Finds Gift Shop and the Region of Waterloo have funded the project.