Dementia
Home Treatment
Home treatment for dementia involves teamwork among health professionals and caregivers to create a safe and comfortable environment and to make tasks of daily living as easy as possible. People who have mild dementia can be involved in planning for the future and organizing the home and daily tasks.
Tips for caregivers
Work with the team of health professionals to:
- Reference Make sure your home is safe.
- Reference Keep the person eating well.
- Reference Manage sleep problems.
- Reference Manage bladder and bowel control problems.
- Reference Manage driving privileges.
The team can also help you learn how to manage behavior problems. For example, you can learn ways to:
- Reference Make the most of remaining abilities. Reinforce and support the person's efforts to remain independent, even if tasks take more time or aren't done perfectly.
- Reference Help the person avoid confusion.
- Reference Understand behavior changes.
- Reference Manage agitation.
- Reference Manage wandering.
- Reference Communicate clearly.
Caregivers should remember to Reference seek support from other family and friends. For more information, see the topic Reference Caregiver Tips.
Nursing home placement
Even with the best care, a person with progressive dementia will decline, perhaps to the point where the caregiver is no longer physically, emotionally, or financially able to provide care.
Making the decision about nursing home placement is often very difficult. Every family needs to consider its own financial situation, emotional capacity, and other issues.
- Opens New Window Alzheimer's or Other Dementia: Should I Move My Relative Into Long-Term Care? Opens New Window
| By: | Reference Healthwise Staff | Last Revised: Reference August 11, 2011 |
| Medical Review: | Reference Anne C. Poinier, MD - Internal Medicine
Reference Peter J. Whitehouse, MD - Neurology |
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