Category: Memory Care

Overview

RiverSpring Living, a mission-driven CCRC in New York, partnered with Composure to pilot a new approach to sleep health for residents living with dementia. The purpose of this pilot was to explore the fit and functional integration of Sound Blanket™ within a complex care environment, including environmental factors, technical infrastructure, and resident needs, in skilled nursing settings where sleep disruption is both common and consequential.

The pilot took place over eight weeks and focused on 12 residents across two skilled nursing units. All participants were living with cognitive impairment and known sleep challenges. Using a combination of passive sleep monitoring and staff-reported outcomes, the pilot evaluated Sound Blanket™’s potential to reduce nighttime disruptions, support better sleep quality, and positively impact fall rates – all without adding burden to the care team.

Approach

This exploratory pilot consisted of three phases:

Baseline – 2 weeks of sleep data-gathering before nightly use of Sound Blanket™
Initial Implementation – A standardized sound sequence supporting all stages of the sleep cycle was introduced
Optimization Phase – Sound Blanket™ settings were adjusted based on sleep data and staff feedback, refining delivery tailored to resident needs and routines

Sleep performance was monitored using Withings passive bed sensors. Leveraging these devices’ data and staff surveys, pilot outcomes were centered around:

Sleep Quality Index (SQI) – a top-line composite score of Total Sleep Time and Sleep Efficiency
Sleep Efficiency (SE) – Total Sleep Time as a percent of Time in Bed.
Sleep Latency (SL) – time taken to fall asleep
Bed Exits (BE) – used as a proxy for sleep fragmentation and safety risk

Additional subjective data sources, which included staff surveys and fall incidents, and medication data from Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems, were used to provide a more complete picture of outcomes. All information shared with Composure was de-identified to protect Personal Health Information (PHI).

Results Summary

Objective Outcomes

56% of residents showed improved Sleep Quality Index (SQI)
44% demonstrated increased Sleep Efficiency (SE)
44% fell asleep faster, with 75% of those improving further after optimization
44% had fewer nighttime bed exits
(See Figure 1)

Figure 1

64% of residents improved the amount of Deep Stage (aka Slow-Wave Sleep, SWS) and/or REM Stage sleep they were able to get on average, comparing Baseline to full Pilot Period (PP) (See Figure 2)
- SWS and REM stages of sleep are where the most restorative rest occurs, and are most often deficient in older adults’ overall sleep architecture.

Figure 2

The chart in Figure 2 shows the percent change in average nightly Deep and REM sleep for each participant, comparing the 2-week baseline to the two, contiguous 3-week Pilot Period (PP1 + PP2). Positive values indicate increased time in these restorative sleep stages during Sound Blanket™ use.

Falls Reduction

64% reduction in falls (See Figure 3)
- Pre-pilot (6 weeks): 14 falls
- Pilot period (6 weeks): 5 falls

Figure 3

Staff Observations

69% rated residents’ sleep as “good” or “very good”
67% observed residents were more alert and engaged during the day

What’s Next

RiverSpring Living is expanding its commitment to implementing Sound Blanket™. The next planned phase of engagement includes a 90-day study involving 50 residents on a single skilled nursing floor. This will enable RiverSpring to further evaluate Sound Blanket™’s operational feasibility, clinical value, and impact across a broader and more consistent resident cohort.

The expanded pilot’s goal is to validate that implementing Sound Blanket™ in complex care environments improves sleep in a way that is both achievable and clinically meaningful.

Organizations seeking scalable, non-pharmacological approaches to sleep care may benefit from similar pilot initiatives to evaluate outcomes in their own environments. For RiverSpring, this marks a meaningful step toward a new frontier in dementia care – one that prioritizes rest, dignity, and operational resilience.

Ready to explore Sound Blanket™ for your community? Book a 30-minute consultation

Contact us: sales@composure.care

Outcomes At a Glance

54% fewer falls (than Long-Term Care in a single month)
96% occupancy rate
120+ staff hours saved per month
Consistently low psychotropic medication use

About Grace Garden

Grace Garden is the dedicated memory care building of LifeSpring Community – a faith-based, not-for-profit organization providing care to older adults of middle Georgia for over 80 years. Since opening, Grace Garden has followed an evidence-based, three-pronged care model focused on engagement, dining, and sleep, earning a reputation for innovative practices and exceptional outcomes for residents living with dementia. Sound Blanket™ has served as the sole sleep intervention, replacing the need for sedative medications or environmental overhauls.

The Challenge

Traditional dementia care environments often lean heavily on medications to manage sleep disturbances, which contributes to:

Increased fall risk
Daytime drowsiness and agitation
Staff burnout during night shifts

Leadership at LifeSpring wanted to prove that better sleep could be achieved without medication—and that doing so could unlock broader health and safety benefits across their community.

The Approach

Sound Blanket™ speakers were installed in all 20 resident apartments at Grace Garden, providing a structured sonic environment each night designed to promote sleep onset, reduce nighttime waking, and improve overall sleep quality. A brief orientation and ongoing support were provided to ensure consistent use and reliability of service.

The outcomes featured in this case study are based on a four-month, before/after comparison within Grace Garden as well as a side-by-side cohort comparison with LifeSpring’s LTC unit. This provides insight into how resident outcomes changed over time and how they compared to a similar population not using Sound Blanket™. EHR and MDS data were used as primary data sources with focus medication use and fall rates. In addition, staff survey responses regarding sleep and related outcomes were collected at 3 weeks and again at 16 weeks post-implementation.

Results That Matter

Better Sleep without Sedatives

40% faster time to fall asleep
43% fewer nighttime waking events
100% reduction in sleep aid (hypnotic) use

Fewer Falls

33.4% lower average fall rate vs. LTC across 5 months → sustained safety impact
54% lower fall rate during Sound Blanket™ use (October) → fewer overnight incidents, lower risk
Before implementation, Grace Garden fall rates were higher than LTC in 2 of 4 months, and lower in all 4 post-implementation months
Average fall rate at Grace Garden remained stable post-implementation, while LTC’s more than doubled

Lower Medication Reliance

45% lower use of antianxiety meds → reduced med management burden
0% hypnotic use across the full 4-month post period at Grace Garden, vs consistent use at LTC
Antipsychotic use at Grace Garden never returned to its highest pre-period level
Grace Garden medication use was highly variable in the pre-period and stabilized post-implementation
Grace Garden maintained lower median usage than LTC across all med classes post-implementation

Positive Staff Feedback

32% reported faster sleep onset among residents
26% saw improvements in daytime alertness
26% reduction in residents needing bedtime assistance
120+ overnight staff hours saved per month due to fewer waking events

A Stable, Trusted Place to Call Home

96% occupancy rate

High, stable occupancy at Grace Garden drives predictable revenue, lower care costs, and stronger community reputation. Sound Blanket™ helps sustain this trusted care environment where residents with dementia thrive.

“We designed Grace Garden to be a safe and secure home-like environment for those living with various forms of dementia. Sound Blanket™ is one of the innovations we put into place that helps us achieve our goal of meeting the individual needs of each resident. Thanks to Sound Blanket™, residents are resting well at night, which contributes to their quality of life and allows them greater engagement throughout the day.”
Tara Johnson, Administrator at Grace Garden, LifeSpring Community

“Grace Garden was our opportunity to show what’s possible when you center care on dignity, purpose, and science. Sound Blanket™ helped us deliver on that promise. It didn’t just support better sleep – it supported our mission. That’s what made it an easy decision to expand service on our campus.”
Dawn Dunbar, Executive Director at LifeSpring Community

Next Steps

Based on Grace Garden’s success, LifeSpring Community is expanding Sound Blanket™ into its LTC building to bring the same resident-centered, sleep-driven benefits to more individuals and care teams across the campus.

Ready to explore Sound Blanket™ for your community? Book a 30-minute consultation

Contact us: sales@composure.care