How to Get an Alzheimer's Patient to Bathe

   This is the second in our series on issues focused on care of folks with Alzheimer's/Dementia. 

At Always There Home Care, we have a serious commitment to supporting families coping with a loved one's Alzheimer's/dementia issues. Our caregivers provide specialized care to these clients. Our CNAs and HHAs have been carefully screened and trained in many aspects of care delivery for clients with Alzheimer's/dementia.

Many Alzheimer's caregivers face this common problem, how do you get a recalcitrant dementia patient to bathe or shower? 

·    Doctors recommend older adults shower or bathe a minimum of twice a week to reduce the chance of infection (especially UTI's in women). If you can get them to bathe more, kudos to you. If not, be satisfied with twice a week, unless another medical condition demands more frequent bathing.

·    To combat the "NO's" try to make it seem as if the request is just a routine part of daily life as in, "It's Tuesday morning. We always take our bath on Tuesday morning. Let's go get cleaned up, and then I'll make you a nice breakfast."

·    Provide positive reinforcement so that your loved one does get rewarded for complying. Doing this over and over, as part of the regular routine, imbeds in your loved one the behavior you want to happen.

·    Create a pleasant warm environment via heat lamp or simply heater.  Have all supplies ready, music perhaps, warm towels set to go.

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It is imperative that if you are suspecting that a loved one is having a stroke that you take very quick action to prevent serious damage.  Our caregivers have been trained in this simple detection method, and have, by their quick action, saved functionality of our clients and in some instances, saved their lives. It is worth learning and remembering!

If you think someone may be having a stroke, act F.A.S.T. and do this simple test:

Stroke Symptoms Include:

SUDDEN numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg - especially on one side of the body.

SUDDEN confusion, trouble speaking or understanding.

SUDDEN trouble seeing in one or both eyes.

SUDDEN trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.

SUDDEN severe headache with no known cause.

Call 9-1-1 immediately if you have any of these symptoms

Act F.A.S.T.

FACE
 Ask the person to smile. Does
 one side of the face droop?

ARMS

Ask the person to raise both arms.
Does one arm drift downward?

SPEECH
 Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence.
Are the words slurred?  Can he/she repeat the sentence correctly?

TIME
 If the person shows any of these symptoms, time is important.

Call 911 or get to the hospital fast. Brain cells are dying.

Source: National Stroke Association http://www.stroke.org

Seabury Active Living Retirement Community, Bloomfield
 One of Connecticut's first retirement communities, Seabury has grown impressively from its original community.  The sprawling campus now boasts several individual residences, from apartments to substantial single homes.  Their memory care unit is superb.  The surroundings provide lovely views in all seasons and an impressive array of activities keeps folks busy.

We are privileged to have received referrals from and be able to coordinate care with many Assisted Living facilities, rehab facilities, and Medicare Home Care and Hospice agencies.   Our growth is in large part due to the trust the staff in these organizations have put in our caregivers.  We are likewise impressed with them and we are committed to referring to them on a regular basis.

Arbor Rose, Assisted Living, New Britain

Long a favorite community of ours, Arbor Rose boasts a wonderful and caring group of staff, activity folks who keep life interesting for residents and a very welcoming environment for our pet therapy program. Casey, our Golden retriever loves her afternoons with the residents of the Garden, their memory unit and her individual visits to folks in both Arbor Rose assisted living and those in Jerome Home.  Our caregivers who are providing service for some residents at Arbor Rose have determined that Arbor Rose serves the best food of any community in which they've worked.  High praise indeed!

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by Kelly McNamara

Valerie Cipriano, Community Liaison.  What can we say about Valerie?  She is our valuable office person, our live in employees' support system, our superb relief caregiver, enthusiastic leader of our pet therapy program, frequent visitor to our clients, and an amazing professional photographer.  Valerie is a relatively new employee and we are thrilled to have her.  We are still discovering her talents!

Lola Ballesteros, Caregiver. Once again Lola makes the list.  This month Lola served as our official trainer and orientation person to help  caregivers new to our company to know and practice all the skills required in the care of the clients to whom they were assigned.  Lola's teaching is comprehensive, individualized, effective, and much appreciated by our new employees.  Special thanks to Lola for her sensitive and professional handling of the transition of TC's new caregiver.

Dawn Reed, Senior Caregiver, Director Care Coordination.  Dawn's life is full already with raising three wonderful children and attending to her academic responsibilities as a full time nursing student.  Yet she is always available to take special care of her clients and use her astute assessment skills to find and treat early symptoms of illness in her clients.  She provides extra special care to MH and MT, and we are thrilled to have her as a team leader with both these clients as a resource to both our staff as well as to the clients' families.

Special thanks to all caregivers mentioned for their extra special care. They will all receive gift cards and our sincere appreciation!  And again, from Regina and myself, THANK YOU! 

The Elder caring Challenge: Caring for a Difficult Parent....Just Listen.

"You're not a bad daughter."

Published on April 28, 2010 by Mark Goulston, M.D., F.A.P.A. in Just Listen

As more baby boomers are dealing with an aging difficult parent, this story came to mind:

"You're not a bad daughter," I told my client, a grown woman with children of her own.

Her body shook as she sobbed. Her 92-year-old mother was in failing health, living in an upscale assisted-living facility. Although she did not require a walker, wheelchair, feeding tube or oxygen as did many of the other residents, she complained incessantly -- about the food, uncaring family members, the brusqueness of the staff.

Julia tried to be an advocate for her mother but found it increasingly difficult in the face of her nastiness.

Then there was her mother's constant criticism of Julia's children, who never called or visited. Julia thought that they were merely doing what she would have liked to do -- but couldn't.

As a result the client found herself wishing her mother would die, this only increased her guilt about the situation.

Many adult children would be relieved to know they are not alone in feeling that way. These adult children, often in their 50s and 60s, live under a cloud that will not leave until their parents pass away.

Watching a parent become weaker, sicker or more enfeebled is stressful, of course, but most adult children can bear that.

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