Dr Bill Thomas is the founder of the Eden Alternative – a training system for radically changing the way residents of long-term nursing facilities are cared for. During his time as medical director of a nursing home in New York, Bill came to realise that loneliness, helplessness and boredom were causing the greatest burden of suffering to residents there. Following a ten-principled approach, the Eden Alternative works with tools and resources already available in existing facilities to create a human environment with indivualised care for elders, and more interaction with the community around them. The resulting improvement in quality of life and better clinical treatment leads to residents living longer and taking fewer medications, as well as greater staff satisfaction and increased revenue for the facilities. To date over 23,000 Eden Associates have been trained to implement the work of the Eden Alternative in more than 200 care homes across the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia.
