Biography
I am semi-retired after working over 30 years in the legal field. As the office manager and senior paralegal at my late husband’s law firm, I was exposed to many people facing legal and health problems especially in middle age and toward the end of life. When my husband died, I was thrown into the world of estate law and its companion, eldercare.
As part of a large extended family, I watched my parents and their siblings deal with their parents’ elder years and the health and financial issues they faced. Then came my turn as my father endured dementia for several years before his death. I was a long distance caregiver and he was in a rural area with few resources. Also, I’m a nine year survivor of Stage 3B cancer. I had to face the possibility of my own mortality and think about how I wanted to deal with that and how to make that easier for my loved ones.
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His widow suffers from short term memory loss and her care had to be coordinated long distance. She lives in a more urban area which gave us more options. It is important that proper steps be taken regarding their daily care, doctor visits and medications, and financial management our elderly need. It is just as important to help them with their estate documents and advanced medical directives so their wishes are honored and their deaths are less stressful for them and their surviving loved
Literature Review: The Effectiveness of the use of Sensory Therapy for Elderly Adults Diagnosed with Dementia.
Dementia is a term used to describe the symptoms of a number of illnesses which effect the function of the brain. It is an umbrella term describing the progressive decline in a person’s cognitive ability. The type and severity of symptoms varies with each type of dementia and is usually has a gradual onset, is progressive and irreversible. (1)
Dementia is a term used to describe symptoms associated with decline in memory or other
The impact of dementia is a mounting global health problem and through worldwide education the incidence and prevalence can be diminished. Global education is critical with the projected dementia incidence, the lack awareness and understanding of dementia, no dementia cure and the associated stigma. These factors combined have a major impact on the person with dementia and society. No solo country, sector or organisation can encounter this global health problem by themselves.
Dementia originated from the Latin language meaning ‘mind gone’. The course of the disease declines to the last stage and the person will forget majority of his or her memory. The patient will go about his or her normal ways during the first stage of dementia; eyes and mind are clear. During the beginning of the last stage, the patient will depend on the caretaker for his or her needs and will not recall the things he or she has learned. In the last phase of the last stage, the patient will be “born again”, meaning he or she will derive from the end of his life to the beginning. Similar to the Alzheimer’s disease, the nerve cells in the brain become short. The brain will not function properly because of the shrinkage of the nerve cells, but
Long term health care and end of life care is a reality that is usually inevitable. “Research shows that at least 70 percent of people over 65 will need long term care services at some point in their lifetime” (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 2012). There are many decisions that people must make in the event. Don and Mary are a married couple who have to make that decision. Don and Mary served together in the military. After the military they both made careers for themselves. Now they are retired and enjoying life traveling and spending time with family. However, now Mary has developed a disease called Alzheimer’s that has left her with a limited memory and sundowner’s syndrome.
Dementia praecox was first introduced to the world by Dr. Emile Kraepelin, but its name later changed to Schizophrenia in 1911, by Swiss psychiatrist, Eugen Bleuler, he was the first doctor to describe the symptoms from positive to negative classified directly as a mental illness. According to the National Institute of Health, approximately 1.1% of the population worldwide is diagnosed with schizophrenia yearly. The disorder affects both men and woman, it does not discriminate. Its onset in seen in teen years and young adulthood, the frustration caused by living with a mind that feels disorganized much of the time often causes feelings of suicidal thoughts sadness, and anxiety. People with this condition find themselves socially isolated mainly
The reporting party (RP) stated she received a call from resident John Tedford who resides in the assisted living portion of the facility. The RP stated the resident does not have dementia and maintains his cognitive abilities. The RP stated the resident disclosed that money was stolen from his checking account. The RP stated the bank was contacted regarding the account and disclosed that the account was closed on 7/17/15. The bank informed the RP there were two checks issued that were not cashed. According to the RP the resident's checking account contained $10,500 and the savings account contained $169,000 at the time the accounts were closed. The RP stated the bank reissued the checks to the resident and mailed them to his wife's resident.
Nicole, I too am fascinated with how the brain differs in patients with Dementias. I am also curious about comparing the brains of those people who have suffered many concussions, those with dementias/AD and those healthy brains. If I had the opportunity I would like to observe a medical examination of brains from decceased with all 3 differences. I do not mean to be morbid, but I feel that would be very interesting. Research sometimes comes in very uncomfortable situations and forms .
Dementia is characterized as a condition where the mental processes of cognition and memory start to deteriorate. It is described as a syndrome that hinders the daily lives of those who have it and is characterized by memory and thinking impairment. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s Disease and the second most common is vascular dementia. Dementia is a syndrome occurring usually, but not limited, to people over the age of 40 and is due to brain damage caused by natural deteriorating, stroke or can be brought on by factors such as excessive drinking or drug abuse. Dementia is best cared for in its early stages and, therefore, an early diagnosis is essential. Recognizing the symptoms by both the dementia patient and the
The most common medications used to treat symptoms of dementia in the UK are: anti-psychotic drugs, tranquilizers, hypnotic drugs, anti-depressive drugs, anti-anxiety drugs, pain killers, antibiotics. They do not cure dementia.
Today, with the researched help of different organizations and hospitals that I will use and site throughout this paper, I am exploring the broad subject of Dementia and the different categories that come with having this detrimental disease.
I believe that the above statement if false, I have personal experience showing that you do not develop dementia if you live long enough. My grandmother lived to be 102 years old and was of very sound mind, with no signs of dementia. It is shown that the rates of dementia increase with age, but being demented is not a normal part of aging (Segal, Qualls & Smyer, 2011). Looking at trends that are shown in older adults actually show that with age mental distress or diseases decrease as age increases and older adults have the lowest rate of mental disorders of any age group (Segal, Qualls & Smyer, 2011). There is one other pattern that is noticeable when it comes to mental
Dementia is a clinical concept. It is identified by loss of specific essential abilities and is usually complex as the individual who suffers can experience irregularities of mood, perception, and behaviour, creating the person not seem their normal self (Hughes, J et al 2010). Dementia is an overall term for illnesses which is a gradual progressive decline in an individual’s memory and other cognitive abilities. There are many variations of dementia; Alzheimer’s disease gradually destroys brain cells in addition to their connections. Vascular dementia is caused by issues with the blood supply to brain. It can involve minor strokes which damage areas of the brain. Lewy body’s dementia is the build-up of defective proteins in the brain. There are stages of dementia early, middle and late. Mr X is in late stages of Lewy body dementia, illness has affect the person’s abilities, so that he will has more difficult with general daily activities due to Braak, H, et al (2009) Declares that Lewy bodies can affect many neurons in the nervous system having an adverse effect on the individuals core abilities of movement .
Overall, I did pretty well on the quiz. I only missed a few of the questions. Many of these questions seemed like common sense, such as when we age, our senses, such as eyesight and hearing, decline. Also, we tend to lose our physical strength as we age. I was aware that older adults are still very much interested in having sex from taking human sexuality, but I'm sure many others missed that question. That is a very common belief that the elderly are not sexually active. It's relieving to know that the majority of older adults do not suffer from dementia or end up in nursing homes. In fact, a very small percentage of older adults are diagnosed with dementia. This gives me hope for my future! The most surprising answer that I missed was the