Integrated Medicine and Complementary Care.

A lot is asked of Care Institutions these days. Medical care of the highest quality, an enviroment wherein patients, residents staff and volunteers all can feel good and where there's rom for personal attention. A person is more than just their ilness or complaint. Every person and certainly ones that are ill, deserves the correct attention for a healthy body and soul, good and tasty food, pleasant music, a reassuring touch, a good chat or just to be able to enjoy some peace and quite.

Also a pleasantly designed and decorated environment in which to spend the days and nights is important. This goes just as much for a short-term hospital patient as for the elderly person who is in long-term care or a handicapped child in a residential home.
You hear about it more and more. Patient-focussed care, Experience-focussed care, Stimulate the senses, Integrated Medicine, Healing Environment and Complementary Care.
Complementary Care is based on extra treatments that go together with those in the "Regular" Care. The individual care needs of the patient are thus more completely catered for.

Total Care & the Healing Environment

Because of the desire for general improvements and also to focus on the specific care needs of the individual, there's today much more attention given to "Total Care". Wellness and Feeling Good are becoming recognised as important elements, from which not just the patients but also the staff can benefit. Hospitals and Hospices, Old People's and other Residential Homes and even Home-care Organisations are all looking more seriously at creating the so-called Healing Environment and thus often now provide Complementary Aromatherapy, Massage, etc. The expertise and products from De Levensboom are put to good use like this in several institutions here in The Netherlands.

From an Old People's Residential Home in Terborg to a hospital in Groningen. A Residential Home in Amsterdam and the famous St. Lucas Andreas Hospital in Amsterdam. There, women in childbirth are surrounded by warm colurs, soft lights and their personal choice of smells from De Levensboom developed Aromatheraputic Essential Oil special compositions.

Many nurses, carers and care-givers have enjoyed and benefited from one or more the various courses given by De Levensboom at our Expertise Centre in Wernhout or on location. They now have a firm grounding in the techniques of both Aromatherapy and Hydrotherapy. It's with good reason therefore, that De Levensboom has been evaluated and certified by the Certification Committee of the Dutch "Kwaliteitsregister Verpleegkundigen en Verzorgenden" (Quality Register for Nurses and Auxiliary Nurses) De Levensboom is a member of the V&VN (the Dutch Board of Nursing) and the NIKIM organisation (the National Information Centre for Integrative Medicine in The Netherlands) and is associated with various other organisations in the Healthcare Sector, such as Agora (a Dutch organisation for Palliative Care Support). We are therefore always up to date with all the latest developments, share information and experiences with colleagues in various fields and play a role in the constant quest for improved knowledge, experience and techniques.

Feeling Good

Despite all the efforts of the staff, a patient or resident can sometimes feel unsure of the themselves, lonely and isolated. This kind of situation often severely disrupts the process of recovery after an operation or other procedure. When you feel good in yourself, even though you may be suffering from an illness or other medical condition, then the road to recovery is always shorter and straighter.

Aromas can play an important role here. When chosen by an expert, subtle aromas and scents can help to reduce anxiety, create a calm and soothing atmosphere, stimulate the appetite, suppress bad and stale odours and help with achieving a restful sleep. Aromas can even help to build bridges between cultures, thus reducing potential tensions.

You and your Organisation in good hands with De Levensboom

At De Levensboom we help carers such as Nurses and Auxiliaries to give each patient individually tailored attention. To do this we make use of - amongst other things - not only aromas, scents and tastes but also, water therapy, massage and other beneficial methods of contact. We combine simplicity with effectiveness and safety. Think about a "Care Moment" such as a hand massage, a scented footbath, or a warm compress. We can also ensure that the air is fresh-smelling and for a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere in not just the day-room, a bedroom or bathroom but also in the Polyclinic, the Ward, the Pre-Op, an NICU or IC and of course the Waiting Rooms.

Next to all this we offer extensive specialised experience in the spacial filed of Palliative and Paliative Terminal Care. This can include for instance, helping to reduce pain, giving relaxing massages and other contact techniques, to soothe and calm, in an atmosphere of warm and peace, where the patient feels relaxed and safe.
Naturally, we'll work closely with your organisation itself and its staff. We'll support you and your organisation, step by step, from the very first meeting onwards, with the introduction and implementation of Complementary Care, with the whole programme carefully designed around your specific, needs, possibilities and of course, budget.

WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF COMPLETING THE TRANSLATION OF THIS PAGE. THE COMPLETED ENGLISH VERSION WILL BE AVIALABLE IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS. IN THE MEANTIME, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE CONTACT US BY E-MAIL OR TELEPHONE

"Scentsible" Healthcare

Tevens verzorgen we zintuigprojecten, zoals het helpen activeren of juist tot rust brengen van de zintuigen bij kinderen en ouderen, bij mensen in coma, met een handicap of met dementie. We ondersteunen activiteitenbegeleiders en adviseren over het gebruik van geuren, kleuren en texturen.

Als aanvulling hierop ontwikkelen we in collegiale samenwerking met andere organisaties complete projecten voor alle sectoren in de zorg, van een geurplan tot het ontwerpen en realiseren van een voel-je-goed-omgeving op afdelingen, poliklinieken, wachtkamers en woonunits. Dat kan variëren van het verspreiden van subtiele geuren in specifieke ruimten en het herinrichten van units om het thuisgevoel te versterken, tot het bedenken en inrichten van zintuigtuinen en rustruimten binnen of buiten. Kijk ook eens onder het kopje Prikkel je Zintuigen op onze site.

Complementaire Zorg Trainingen en Opleidingen

Bij De Levensboom trainen we verplegenden en verzorgenden in cursussen die direct aansluiten op de praktijk, met overzichtelijke readers. We geven competentie gerichte opleidingen en workshops met toetsingsmomenten en veel aandacht voor individuele behoeften en het oefenen van vaardigheden.

De Levensboom is als opleider geaccrediteerd door het Kwaliteitsregister V&V. We laten cursisten nadenken en meedenken over de ideale situatie waarin zij zelf als zorgverlener oud of ziek zouden willen zijn. We bieden middels protocollen en richtlijnen direct toepasbare handvatten die relatief eenvoudig kunnen worden geïmplementeerd en laten de deelnemers ervaren hoe prettig het kan zijn de geboden technieken te ontvangen en te geven. Verder bieden we ondersteuning bij het integreren van complementaire zorg binnen de zorginstelling en thuiszorg. Ook bieden we trainingen aan vrijwilligers en mantelzorgers die graag net een extra beetje meer willen bieden aan de zorgvragers onder hun hoede.

Kijk voor een overzicht van onze educatieve activiteiten onder het kopje Complementaire Opleidingen en in de Agenda bij De Levensboom op onze site.

Voor meer informatie nodigen wij u graag uit vrijblijvend contact met ons op te nemen zodat wij samen met u kunnen kijken waar we u van dienst kunnen zijn voor de ideale complementaire zorg.

De Levensboom

Centre for Complementary Care
Madeleine Knapp Hayes-Wellhüner
Wernhoutseweg 142
4884 MD Wernhout
Tel: +31 76 596 3380

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About "De Levensboom".
The organisation is run by Madeleine Knapp Hayes - Wellhüner. Her roots lie in nursing and she has qualifications not only as a Herbalist and Aromatherapist but also as a Hydrotherapist and Orthomolecular Nutricianist. Over the last 15 years, she has focussed more and more on working with and giving training in, Aromatherapy and Hydrotherapy. Madeleine gives Professional Training, lectures and workshops, publishes her work and teaches at the ROC in Sittard (Limburg). Her passion as a Complementary Care Specialist lies in (successfully) building bridges between Conventional Medicine and Complementary Care, based on mutual respect and understanding for the people and the organisations.