Prospects for Introducing the EDEN ALTERNATIVE® TO JAPAN

To date, no elder care facilities in Japan have formally introduced the Eden Alternative (R) philosophy of care. The purpose of this cross-sectional descriptive study was to identify the perceptions of care workers and nurses regarding the lives of older adults in care facilities to consider the prospects for introducing the Eden Alternative to Japan. The participants included 139 care workers and 41 nurses who responded to a survey questionnaire based on Eden Alternative principles developed by the researchers for this study. More than half of the participants indicated that they sometimes thought the older adults experienced feelings of helplessness, loneliness, and boredom and hoped for changes in the manner of care to improve the lives of residents. Participants were also in favor of the residents having plants and visits from children, but opinions about having animals on site were split. The fact that the survey respondents noticed the problems indicated by the Eden Alternative suggests there is great potential for introducing the Eden Alternative to Japan.