Dementia Day Care Benefits (Research, Video 5:08)

Through the years, I have noticed a reluctance by several caregivers to enroll a loved one in a dementia day care program. They usually defend their positions by saying statements such as, “No one can take better care of him than I can,” or “I’m sure she won’t like it there. She would rather stay at home.” Having visited and participated in several dementia day care programs, I know that a daily routine focused on dementia-oriented activities, balanced hot meals, supportive caregivers and loving friends is far better that sitting at home in a limited environment that too often includes mostly watching television, eating and sleeping.

Nowadays, I suggest to caregivers that they and their loved ones living with dementia visit a day care program for just one day and see how they like it. So far, no one has stopped going back. On one first day trip, the person with dementia did not want to leave when all her new friends walked her to the door, hugged her and said good-bye. And the caregivers still say they wish they had gone sooner. They especially appreciate the quality respite time that they can enjoy, while knowing their loved ones are in good hands at the dementia center.

The best part of day care is that both caregivers and those with dementia benefit. A research study examined the effects adult day care programs had on individuals with dementia and their caregivers from the perspective of care providers at such a program.The care providers identified several benefits. These benefits followed two themes including the role of care providers and the time to breathe. 

The following video demonstrates activities of the San Diego, California Alzheimer's Day Care Center (Glenner Town Square) where a 1950’s memory village has been created. The video explains information about Alzheimer’s disease and what caregiver providers and those living with dementia can do at the village to stimulate minds and improve their sense of purpose.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Can Older Adults With Dementia Enjoy Life? (Research, Arts Video 3:04 mins.)

I have a friend whose mother has Alzheimer's disease. He and his father are her primary caregivers at home. He says that people generally feel sorry for them. When his mother’s name comes up in conversations, the tone changes to one of sadness. They also assume that his mother must be an unhappy person because of her mentally impaired condition. The other day, I smiled at his response when I asked him how she was doing. He said, “Mama is doing just fine. Pops and I focus on keeping her healthy and active. Most of the time, she is as happy as she can be.”

A research study in the “International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry” supports that assessment. Consisting of interviews with 1,620 community-dwelling older adults, the study examined the following:

1) Overall life satisfaction with material circumstances and with social circumstances of older adults with no cognitive impairment, with cognitive impairment without dementia, and with dementia

2) The effect of cognition on life satisfaction across a broad spectrum of cognition

3) The effect of factors such as depressive symptoms, functional impairment, education, and social support.

While participants with dementia and participants with cognitive impairment without dementia did have lower life satisfaction than those with normal cognition, the effects were relatively small. The study concluded that, although cognition is associated with life satisfaction, older adults are generally satisfied with life.

Older adults with dementia have varied days like everyone else. Happy memories and enriching activities can slow dance into their realities and fill them with joy. This video titled “I Remember Better When I Paint: Treating Alzheimer’s Through Creative Arts” shows how creative arts activities can enhance the quality of their lives. A longer DVD version can be purchased at amazon.com, frenchcx.com, artistsforalzheimers.com, and hilgos.com.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Dementia (Alzheimer’s) Caregiving with Understanding and Patience (Video 5:31 mins.)

Dementia refers to a group of conditions that gradually destroy brain cells and lead to mental decline. Many conditions can cause dementia, but Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, this disease, which advances at different rates, destroys memory and the ability to learn, reason, make judgments, communicate, and perform daily activities. Patients may also experience changes in behavior and personality such as anxiety and delusions.

Dementia is like a fluttering bee. As a hospice volunteer in nursing homes, I never knew when it would make honey or sting. There were times when residents with dementia were rude or violent. I have seen one slap a CNA’s (certified nursing assistant) face with such force I thought the CNA would fall over. To her credit, she took a deep breath and walked away while another CNA intervened.

Residents with dementia enjoyed talking about the past and embellishing their stories. Sometimes they remembered detailed incidents from childhood and minutes later couldn’t remember where they were. They needed encouragement when they became afraid. I tried to analyze what caused certain behaviors. Distractions helped them change their thoughts. Just like everyone else, they felt respected when their opinions mattered. I let them make some decisions, usually limiting the choices to two, so they wouldn’t feel overwhelmed.

Caregivers and other loved ones of those with dementia have to remind themselves often that patients’ repetitious questions and other unintentional behaviors are manifestations of the disease. This video titled “What is that?” reminds them (and all of us) to dig deeply into wells of themselves for understanding and patience.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Dementia and Jewish Holocaust Survivors (Audio)

Dementia refers to a group of conditions that gradually destroy brain cells and lead to mental decline. Many conditions can cause dementia, but Alzheimer’s (Ahlz-high-merz) disease is the leading cause. Most people who have the disease are over sixty-five, with eighty being the average age of diagnosis. There is no cure for patients with dementia, and they need complete care eventually.

Survivors of the Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed, experience special challenges with dementia. At eighty-two years old, Fred Festinger is one of sixty-five Holocaust survivors at the Los Angeles Jewish Home for the Aging. He can still recall being brought to a Nazi concentration camp at the age of sixteen. His main goal in life then was to reach the age of twenty. Two months after he turned twenty, he was liberated.

Like numerous survivors, Fred’s liberation was only a physical one. Because many of the survivors’ trauma was never treated through therapy or medication, they still suffer with flashbacks and nightmares. Dementia has resulted in even less control for them over anxiety symptoms caused by blurred realties of the past and present. You can listen to more about Fred’s life in this podcast at the NPR Web site.

Frances Shani Parker, Author
"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”
Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog