11: Everything Else You Need to Know

  • Preventing a problem takes a lot less time and effort than actually dealing with it when the problem arises.
  • All persons with progressive dementia suffer from severe communication problems. Namely, expressive and receptive language difficulties.
  • Specific communication strategies can accomplish collective goals.

Thank you for completing the GIFT (Geriatric interventions for Troubled Minds) Care for Elderly training. This training focuses on improving care for elderly patients who has dementia.

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Verbal Communication Strategies

Be specific and direct with your requests (e.g., “Come with me” as opposed to “What do you want to do today?”).

Use short, simple words and sentences.

Provide few, simple choices (e.g., “Do you want beef or chicken?” as opposed to “What do you want to eat?”).

Eliminate distractions from the environment (persons with dementia are easily distracted and require their full attention to effectively track conversations).

Communication Style Strategies

Do not talk louder or in a patronizing manner (recall that patients, even those with severe impairment, still have some sense of how adults are supposed to talk to one another).

Do not command or use a commanding tone (e.g., “Get out of bed!”).

Do not ask questions that rely on memory (this can cause extreme anxiety in patients).

Do not focus on logic or explaining yourself (arguing with patients only makes matters worse, as they lose the ability to use logic).

Do not view behavior problems as intentional. Their disease is to blame for these challenges.

Managing Paranoia, Delusions, Hallucinations.

Remain calm and focus on patients’ feelings.

Reassure them that you are there to help – use your name and theirs.

Use touch to reassure and calm them (if “therapeutic” touch has worked in the past).

Don’t take accusations personally (again, their disease is to blame).

Check the validity of accusations (sometimes so-called “delusions” turn out to be true; e.g., someone is really stealing their money).

Provide very simple explanations for events.

Distract to other topics of conversation or activities.

Managing Repetitive Statements or Questions.

Provide attention for non-repetitive behavior.

Be patient and remain calm (remind yourself that the disease is to blame).

Reassure patients if they think something is wrong or they did something wrong.

Respond to feelings.

Distract.

Write down the answers to FAQs on a card and have them refer to the card.

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