Originally published in the Portsmouth Herald.
HAMPTON – Cornerstone at Hampton held a flag-raising ceremony today to celebrate receiving the Purple Flag for Dementia Care™ accreditation. Cornerstone at Hampton is the first community in the state of New Hampshire to become Purple Flag accredited.
Purple Flag for Dementia Care™ is a collaboration between the Institute for Senior Living Education (ISLE) and the Connecticut Assisted Living Association (CALA) but has since expanded outside of CT. The program’s standards evaluate an organization’s capacity to provide collaborative care in a safe, functional and respectful environment, ensuring high quality care and overall quality of life for residents. As part of the evaluation process, Cornerstone at Hampton had to demonstrate adherence to 60 best practice standards and training outlined by Purple Flag for services provided to individuals with Alzheimer’s and other dementias.
The flag-raising event provided an opportunity for the community’s associates, residents, family members and local eldercare professionals to celebrate the milestone achievement. Notable guests included State Representatives Chris Muns and Candice O’Neil, Hampton Selectman Rusty Bridle, Tracey Hamlin-Landry from the Department of Health and Human Services and Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce President John Nyhan.
“We found a like-minded organization in Purple Flag, which has recognized the importance of a person-centered approach and built an entire framework around it to hold communities and organizations like ours to a higher standard for dementia care,” said Katrina June, Executive Director of Cornerstone at Hampton. “I want to commend Chris Carter and Purple Flag for creating this new standard and for giving us this opportunity to be trendsetters in the state of New Hampshire, raising the bar for our state’s assisted living industry.”