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ch. 19
Study guide questions: confusion, dementia, and alzheimers
Question | Answer |
---|---|
Causes of Confusion | UTI, low blood pressure, head trauma or injury, dehydration, nutritional problems, fever, sudden drop in body temp, lack of oxygen, meds, infections, brain tumor, illness, loss of sleep, & seizures. |
Guidelines for confusion | don't leave resident alone, stay calm provide quiet environment, speak in a lower tone of voice, clearly and slowly, introduce self, remind resident of his/her location, name, and the date, explain what you are going to do, don't rush resident |
guidelines for confusion cont' | talk to confused residents about plans for the day, encourage the use of eyeglasses and hearing aids, make sure they are clean. Promote self-care and independence, report observations to nurse. |
Facts about Alzheimers | Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly, 5.4 million ppl in the U.S have AD, women are more likely to have it, risk increases with age normal part of aging, AD is progressive, degenerative, and irreversible. |
Facts about AD cont' | tangled nerve fibers & protein deposits in the brain cause dementia, cause is currently unknown and diagnosis is difficult, length of time from onset to death can range from 3-20 yrs, each person shows diff signs. at diff times. |
Stages of AD | stage 1: no impairment stage2: very mild decline 3. Mild decline 4. Moderate decline 5. Moderately severe 6. Severe decline 7. Very severe decline |
Communication Skills with Alzheimer's | always approach from the front, determine how close the resident wants you to be, communicate in a room with little background noise and distraction, always identify yourself, use their name, speak slowly, using a lower tone of voice |
comm. with AD cont' | repeat yourself using the same words and phrases, as often as needed. Use signs, pics, gestures, or written words to help communicate, break complex tasks into smaller, simpler ones. |
How to work with difficult behaviors | keep them calm, speak in a low calm voice, try to see and hear yourself as residents might. describe what you are going to do, use simple words and short sentences, check your body language. |