Establishment “International Snoezelen Association ISNA-Snoezelen professional “ e.V.

For the second time this year we – the teaching team and I - would like to welcome you to our new website.

We would like to take this opportunity to give you a status update. We are now a registered association under the name of “International Snoezelen Association ISNA Snoezelen professional “ e.V. (Register of associations Reg. number: 2012-6009-UR-Nr. 364/2012). The process was necessary as our association has grown substantially since its establishment 10 years ago and are receiving an increasing number of enquiries from all over the word regarding content, objectives, efficiency and training opportunities. Two years ago we envisaged to establish an international network. As a result the focus was placed increasingly on holding congresses all over the world which meant the members in Germany (the largest number of the 35 member countries) missing out. Not only with regards to the content. Communication is supposed to be in English only, expected to be “fluent” in writing and in speech. Such a demand will be off-putting to our German members (as well as most of the members from Latin American), especially considering that ISNA was founded 10 years ago in Germany for local members. It was due to the international interest in our work that people from all over the world were invited to join us which meant we had to communicate in German and English but never expected perfection.

We consider it the main focus of our association to impart and propagate the method of Snoezelen based on scientific evidence mainly in Germany and bordering countries but also worldwide due to the interest. Because of the registration the association has more opportunities to carry out scientific research and to raise financial support from third-party funds.

Over the last ten years we have learned that our Snoezelen concepts are suitable to competently and professionally support ill people, especially people with disabilities. We see it as our responsibility to carry on developing educational and therapeutic concepts. The Snoezelen rooms used to promote learning in nurseries and schools have a special significance and motivate every child to concentrate on learning. We have had great success with Snoezelen in connection with particular disorders such as Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), early autism, disorders of body awareness and in visual and audible areas. On that topic numerous observation reports, essays and dissertations were written by students of the Humboldt University Berlin and as part of the Additional Qualification Snoezelen. We have applied observation and test procedures and carried out measurements in cooperation with students studying computer sciences at the Humboldt University, Berlin, in order to measure the efficiency of Snoezelen und develop further concepts based on the results.

The intended competent propagation of Snoezelen should also guard against people jumping on the bandwagon. Professional training is essential to avoid harm. It is sad to see when clients of “free Snoezelen” are sent to a room and cared for without any prior planning or consideration and are sent to a room stuffed with electronic equipment causing sensory overload. Tailored advice and guidance to select equipment according to the target groups’ needs and the target-group specific setup of a Snoezelen room is vital.

The association is committed to propagate Snoezelen professionally (c.f. homepage training) and to offer regular training opportunities. For the future we are aiming to focus more on the elderly – especially people with dementia. We have been offering specialised courses aimed at dealing with that target group for several years already. Also the unavoidable subject of stress and Burn-out will need to be considered. On that matter there is currently a Snoezelen concept being developed on handling that illness. Nowadays Snoezelen has become an integral part of complementary medicine as the positive feedback from our clientele shows. They have received help through Snoezelen, feel better and have become more stable. Snoezelen promotes wellbeing, rest and relaxation in all people, not just the ill – but also the staff working at the institutions has discovered the benefits of a little Snoezelen break.

We appreciate your interest in our website and hope it will keep you inspired. Why not become a member of the association “International Snoezelen Association ISNA Snoezelen professional “ e.V.? You can enjoy a number of benefits and maybe you find the time to participate in one of our training courses.

Yours sincerely

Prof. Dr. Krista Mertens