Sooner or later, it will touch us all: our patients, family members or someone else close to us is diagnosed with dementia. With our population aging, we are continually being swept into a flurry of daunting tasks to teach the demented patient skills that are hard to come by, including; locking wheelchair brakes for safety; drinking liquid to prevent dehydration; increase functional independence in toileting, and most importantly, assisting with training the caregiver. As we enter the world of dementia and see the paradigm of service delivery shift to the caregiver, it is increasingly important to increase our knowledge and skill levels, not only for our patients but also for our ability to train caregivers and family members.
Knowing how the diseases of dementia unfold is an invaluable tools for success. Knowing how, when, and what to do for the patients depends on understanding that our professional, and ethical, responsibility is to assist the patient to achieve and maintain their highest level of functioning; therefore, we must know what they need – and this knowing begins with the ability to accurately “stage” a patient’s dementia. Once a patient is staged, the needs of the patient can be more easily seen. This innovative recording presents staging tools that clearly outline, at each distinct stage, the patient’s remaining abilities and the patient’s lost abilities; this is the insight that drives intervention. Discuss and demonstrate the top-evidence based communication techniques in the field for dementia via role play. Complete this dynamic and collaborative recording with the confidence and skills to develop a structured, systematic, and highly individualized therapy programs, and with the abilities to justify their practice.
