We know that cognitive and memory impairments can change how a person thinks, acts and/or feels. These changes often present special challenges for families and caregivers. An ordinary conversation, for example, can be quite frustrating when your loved one has difficulty remembering from one moment to the next what has been said. Always There in Home Health Care works to make these changes easier to understand and work through.

Individuals with moderate to severe dementia or another cognitive impairment often require special care, including supervision (sometimes 24 hours a day), specialized communication techniques and management of difficult behavior. They may need help with activities of daily living (called “ADLs”), such as bathing, eating, transferring from bed to a chair or wheelchair, toileting and/or other personal care.

Ten Steps to Get You Started

Step 1. Lay the foundation. Establishing a baseline of information lays the groundwork for making current and future care decisions. Talk with your loved one, family and friends: What was mom “normally” like? How has she changed? How long has she been forgetting to take her medicine? Answers to these help create a picture of what is going on and for how long. This basic information provides an important foundation for professionals who may be called in to make a more formal assessment.

Step 2. Get a medical assessment and diagnosis from a qualified health care team that reviews both physical and mental health. Many medical conditions can cause dementia-like symptoms, such as depression and medication interactions. Always There provides medical assessments and re-assessments to better determine your loved one’s needs.

Step 3. Educate yourself, your loved one and your family. Talk to doctors, health and social service professionals, and people going through similar experiences. Read books and brochures.

Step 4. Determine your loved one’s needs. Care assessments include a variety of questionnaires and tests designed to determine the level of assistance needed and personal preferences. The degree to which care is needed varies on a case-by-case basis.

Assessments usually consider at least the following categories:

• Personal Care: bathing, eating, dressing, toileting, grooming
• Household Care: cooking, cleaning, laundry, shopping, managing finances
• Health Care: medication management, physician's appointments, physical therapy
• Emotional Care: companionship, meaningful activities, conversation
• Supervision: oversight for safety at home and to prevent wandering

Step 5. Outline a care plan. Once your loved one has received a diagnosis and completed a needs assessment, it will be easier to formulate a care plan—a strategy to provide the best care for your loved one and yourself.

Step 6. Look at finances. In order to best prepare and provide for a loved one’s care, you will need to gain a full understanding of his or her financial assets and liabilities.

Step 7. Review legal documents. Clear and legally binding documents ensure that your loved one’s wishes and decisions will be carried out.

Step 8. Safety-proof your home. Caregivers often learn, through trial and error, the best ways to help an impaired relative maintain routines for eating, hygiene and other activities at home.

Step 9. Connect with others. Joining a support group will connect you with other caregivers facing similar circumstances. Support group members pro-vide one another with social and emotional support, as well as practical information and advice about local resources.

Step 10. Take care of yourself. Although this step appears last on this list, it is the most important step.  Take time for yourself. Recreation is not a luxury; it is a necessary time to “re-create”—to renew you. 

Always There in Home Health Care is committed to providing safe, affordable, and dependable in home care. For more information please check out our website at www.alwaystherehomecare.com or call our office (856)439-1300.