Dementia in older people can lead to significant functional deficiencies that can affect their health. independence and # 39; and & security & # 39; living at home, especially if they live alone. This may include: difficulties associated with basic self-care needs, such as hygiene, bathing, dressing, etc. D .; difficulty taking daily medications; preparing and eating enough food; increased risk of falling due to inconsistencies, weaknesses and poor security awareness; communication difficulties, etc. Dementia can also cause changes in personality, psychosis, and delusional thinking; and many other problems, both subtle and obvious.
Although most people are familiar with Alzheimer's dementia (AD), there are other forms of dementia that can affect older people. This includes vascular dementia, multi-infarction dementia, dementia of the body of Lewi and frontal dementia. People with other primary disorders, such as parkinson's or stroke, may also develop some form of dementia at some point. Dementia is usually classified as moderate, moderate or severe. When AD is diagnosed in someone younger than, say, 65 years old, progress is usually faster and greater than in someone who is 80 years old and only recently diagnosed with a disorder. A CT scan can often reveal if there are any significant areas of atrophy in the brain, sometimes associated with multi-infarction or vascular dementia.
It is important to know what type of dementia a person has, and whether they should take any medication for the disorder. Often, older people at home do not look for a doctor or neurologist to get an accurate diagnosis and get proper medicine that can make life difficult at home; both for the person and for the educator, if any.
One of the hallmarks of AD is difficulty with language and communication skills. Those with AD may have difficulty expressing themselves and communicating with others. There may be a cancellation and rejection of socialization. They may become depressed due to the recognition that their mental abilities have decreased. Sometimes a doctor prescribes an antidepressant, which can also relieve some of the symptoms of their dementia.
Some of the cognitive components required to perform functional tasks include: adequate long-term and short-term memory, relevant information and understanding of safety, consistency skills, ability to focus on the task, sufficient competence and ability to solve problems, and a higher level Executive function abilities. The executive function refers to our ability to plan and perform a range of tasks in order to achieve the desired result. This is a complex mental ability that combines various cognitive abilities; facing people with dementia. For example, baking a cake requires the ability to preheat the oven, collect and mix all the ingredients in the right amount, know when the oven is hot enough, know when the cake is made, and it's safe to remove it from the oven at the right time. Someone with dementia may have difficulty with many of the functional components necessary to perform all of these steps in the correct order to get the desired result.
When mental abilities are reduced, older people are at greater risk of physical health. Declining physical health associated with cognitive deficits can occur due to poor eating habits and malnutrition, poor hygiene and self-help skills, a higher risk of falling, not taking daily prescribed medications, not controlling blood sugar levels - if diabetic and many other related with health.
Some basic home security appliances may include : hand rails on the stairs, well-lit rooms and stairwells, grab bars in the bath / shower, storing toxic items out of reach or locking, no flashy rugs, low-profile carpets, no clutter in the walkways at home, restriction of carrying items up and down the stairs - for example, washing, canceling car keys so that they cannot drive if this is a problem (this is often a difficult problem for patients with dementia), getting an ID bracelet if they are ready luzhdanie gates to prevent them down to the basement and other devices as needed.
For those with mild or moderate dementia who live at home, here are some tips that can be helpful for a person and a family / guardian (the level of care will be determined by the severity of dementia):
- It is important that the individual receive the proper diagnosis that can be obtained from a neurologist, and that a sufficient amount of medication is provided. It is vital that the guardian take care of them and ensure that medicines are taken daily. If there is no family that can help, then perhaps someone from their church or local senior center may be asked to help. In addition, the local agency for aging can make someone look into their well-being, if there is no family member who is responsible for them.
- Take medication from the daily body pill. In this way, the caregiver can ensure that medicines are taken every day. Daily phone calls from someone familiar with the person can then check them and remind them if they live alone.
- Make sure that the food on wheels provides at least one hot meal every day. This may not always be enough, but it can help provide nutrition for some species.
- The local home care agency can provide a home based nanny. stay with a person every day and help with daily activities. They are available for as many hours as possible. This can sometimes be expensive, but sometimes it can be given a lower rate when they work for a certain number of hours each week.
- If a person becomes incontinent, they need to wear neat suitable disposable panties with elastic leg bands. This will prevent accidents from destroying clothing. Offer them a schedule for every two to three hours during the day. At night, on the mattress, you can dampen the alarm to remind the person about changing wet clothes.
- Provide plenty of exercise, such as daily walks. This concerns not only their physical well-being, but it has also been shown that daily walks also provide mental stimulation.
- Participate in daily work on mentally stimulating activities, for example, board games, card games, etc .; tasks requiring interaction and some problem solving. Watching television is the least challenging for people with dementia, but sometimes that’s all they want to do. The problem with television is the lack of interaction or reaction required from the viewer, which is the same problem with young children. A person must be associated with the environment so that it is sufficient, like mental stimulation.
- Allow the person to do as much of their self-help as possible; such as washing, care, etc. Some people with dementia use their hands and hold objects; things that can be manipulated, etc. For a retired mechanic, nuts and bolts can be used; for a housewife who has used sewing or knitting, maybe a ball of yarn can be used. There is no limit to what can be judged; as long as the objects are not sharp, they can be easily swallowed, destroyed, etc.
- Keep in mind that those with mild dementia often become more agitated at the end of the day, and they should not be overly stimulated during this period of time. Sometimes sleep helps them calm down. Even changing medication intervals can help them calm down at the end of the day.
- Keep in mind that medications can affect their level of arousal. Tell your doctor about any side effects that affect a person's ability to function. Cognitive medications must be at a certain level (titrated) to be effective. Too little medicine will not help them, and too much can cause unwanted side effects.
- Consider joining the local head of the Alzheimer's Association. This is a great resource for client and family / caregiver.
