Managing Behaviors without Antipsychotic Drugs

Hello everyone, We’ve shared tidbits before about the use of antipsychotic drugs to address the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, but this important issue is worth revisiting again. Dailycaring.com has a helpful article with tips on how to prevent and address some of the challenging behaviors of dementia like agitation and anxiety without the […]

Tips to Manage Sundowning

Hello everyone, “‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse…” But perhaps, some your residents are? People with dementia often struggle with restlessness, agitation, irritability or confusion that can begin or worsen in late afternoon and early evening, and can continue into the night. Commonly […]

Congratulations!

Hello everyone, Timber Ridge in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania had a summer contest to recognize employees who used effective interventions to address behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. The big winner was Kathleen Hunter! Congratulations Kathleen! We’ve attached a photo of her receiving her award. Kathleen is a CNA on the 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift. One of […]

Addressing Behavioral Challenges

Hello everyone, The UCLA Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Program has developed a set videos addressing common behavioral challenges for caregivers. The brief videos first show a “typical” approach by a caregiver, then some discussion by an expert, and then show the “preferred approach”  of the same scenario and a few more tips. The videos are free […]

Emotions Linger Longer

Hello everyone, Last month, DailyCaring.com had a great article by Dr. Elaine Eshbaugh about how the emotions of a person with dementia (whether positive or negative emotions) can remain with the individual long after the situation or event that caused the emotion to occur. For example, if you startle a person with dementia by coming […]

Holler if it hurts? Strategies for identifying & assessing pain in people with dementia

Hello everyone, Much research has shown that people with dementia are at an increased risk for having their pain under-assessed and under-treated, leading to serious physical and psychosocial consequences including: Gait impairment (leading to increased fall risk) Decreased appetite Sleep disturbances Agitation Physical combativeness Wandering Decrease in daily activities Impaired cognition Verbal aggression Depression Social […]

Decreasing use of antipsychotic medications….

We thought you would find this recent article interesting as you and your staff work to improve the lives of your residents with dementia and decrease the use of antipsychotic medications as much as possible. The article discusses the results of several research trials and offers some approaches you may like to try: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/07/19/537907127/for-dementia-patients-engagement-can-improve-mood-and-quality-of-life In […]