Description

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The international bestseller - an uplifting story of cross-generational living and friendship.Twenty-one-year-old nursing student Teun Toebes (both broke and curious) decided to move into a nursing home and experience the daily life of elderly residents, not as a nurse or a carer - but as a housemate. The experience was to change his life, as well as the lives of his new friends.He initiated Friday drinks, trips out and camping evenings, and reintroduced pleasure in the small things in life: a laugh, a dance, a cup of good coffee, a chance to sit in the sun. As he became embedded in the community, however, Teun became more and more distressingly aware of how society and the care system diminishes the elderly and particularly people living with dementia - and he resolved to do something about it.A number 1 bestseller in the Netherlands, The Housemates is Teun Toebes' story of his years of being a housemate, the friends who changed him and a heartfelt cry for change in how we care for the elderly.

About the Author

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As the eldest in a family of four, with a mother who is anurse, care has always been part of Teun Toebes' life. So, the choice to studyHigher Vocational Education nursing and Care Ethics and Policy was a logicalstep - the choice to work with people living with dementia was not. During acompulsory internship he was introduced to dementia care and has not been ableto let go of it since. Currently, Teun contributes to dementia care by not only observing and studyingpeople living with dementia, but by living with them permanently on a closedward of a nursing home. He focuses on having fun and maintaining personalcontact with all his housemates to create moments of happiness and thus improvetheir quality of life. Teun is the passionate co-founder and ambassador of the Article 25 Foundation.He often appears in the media and is seen as an inspiring face of dementia carein Europe. Teun has won several awards for his work and initiatives, strengthening his mission to make dementia care more humane worldwide. teuntoebes.com article25foundation.com