15th March, 2024

Spark of Passion: Applying the Spark of Life Model of Care in Mumbai, India

Sailesh Mishra
Founder President
Silver Innings
Mumbai, India

A1Senhanjali, assisted living elder care home is a project initiated by the social enterprise Silver Innings. The care home was founded in 2013 by Sailesh Mishra, and is one of its kind in the Maharashtra State. The home is a residential Assisted Living Elder Care Home, for those who do not need constant medical intervention or nursing home care. It is located near Virar, on the outskirts of Mumbai, and has an innovative way of looking at elder care. The centre caters for elders who need special care such as for those suffering from dementia, Parkinson’s Disease and the very old and frail. The ‘A1Snehanjali’ project offers residents through the Spark of Life Model of Care both personalized and group programs and services that focus on stimulating mind, body and soul. A therapeutic and secure environment is provided to the residents along with innovative non-pharmacological interventions.

A1Snehanjali home strongly believes in socialization with meaningful engagement and hence conducts various special activities for the elders. Also, we are empathetic to the stress experienced by the care givers and the resident families. We are first in India to implement the ‘Rights of Residents’ and also have a one of a kind Systematic Admission Procedure which includes Home Visits and counselling. In addition to long-term stay options, we will also have short-term stay ‘Respite’ for elders who need personal care while their family members need time away for work or respite.

Our Founder President Sailesh Mishra was certified as Spark of Life Master Practitioner course in Perth in 2017. His education was sponsored by the charity arm of Dementia Care International, the Dementia Foundation for Spark of Life. Our Project Director Ms. Mona Mishra was likewise sponsored to become a Spark of Life Rehabilitation Facilitator in 2021.  With the Spark of Life Model of Care we have changed the perspective of our A1Snehanjali home: it has made us more human, with understanding and empathy, not only towards our residents with dementia, but also to our Care Partners and families.

The Spark of Life International Master Course educates leaders to implement its magnificent holistic philosophy for Dementia Care. This education has not only enriched us individually but also empowered our team about dementia care and enables us to be better human beings.

Implementing the Spark of Life Philosophy into an organisational culture enriches the lives of our residents with dementia, enabling them to experience improvements in mental abilities, language, self-esteem, social interactions and emotional well-being. The Spark of LifePhilosophy has given us a practical and sustainable way of enriching the lives of people with dementia, their families and carers, transforming the culture of care. The focus is on How to Connect, How to Communicate and How to Care.

With the Spark of Life Model of Care, we now have a more highly educated Team at A1Snehanjali, to provide care for persons challenged with dementia. This involves empathy, engagement, stimulation, simplifying complex tasks and speaking to seniors at slow pace in an appropriate tone. The facility has a secured environment that enables persons with dementia to stroll freely in a protected and supervised setting, with meaningful connections that give them purpose in life. The innovative Spark of Life Rehabilitative Program we have learned, facilitates improvement in cognitive and social abilities.

Our first book ‘Remember Me – You Me and Dementia’ is a self-help dementia book published in Oct 2017 and was inspiration from the Spark of Life Philosophy. The knowledge we received from Dementia Care International not only gave us that confidence and spark to write down the struggle and care of family members, and but also empowered us with a simple holistic way of telling stories and sharing the right knowledge and learnings to help the community in their every-day issues with dementia here in India and beyond.

We are now assured Spark of Life is a genuine and profound philosophy. It is a way of being with the highest intent to lift the spirit, awaken dormant abilities and heal relationships, it facilitates both positive mental and physical health and generates the possibility of rehabilitation and rementia, Rementia describes the recovery of lost abilities when the social and emotional environment becomes more supportive and understanding.

Thanks to the Spark of Life Philosophy and Model of Care, we at A1Snehanjali and Silver Innings are blessed and empowered to work towards Dementia Care International’s inspiring vision of  ‘creating world where people with dementia can lead meaningful and joyous lives and experience a different future of hope and optimism where improvement is possible’.