Specific Needs of the Older Person
Prepared by Margaret Mills
For Care Skills QQI level 5 Assignment
February 2016
Introduction
In this project we are going to look at the Specific Needs of the Older Person with the chronic illness dementia. We will look at the physiological and psychological changes that occur the person’s needs and what role the carer and multidisciplinary team have in assisting the person. I will obtain my information from internet research and tutors notes and handouts.
What is Dementia?
Dementia is an umbrella term for a condition which causes damage to the brain cells and issues with the brain function. There are many different types of dementia such as Lewy Body dementia which causes hallucinations,
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One of the first things you would notice is that their personal hygiene has deteriorated as they don’t remember to wash and dress themselves properly. They can become incontinent. Their balance might not be very good or their eye sight could deteriorate and they would be at risk of falls. When trying to cook they wouldn’t have any fear of burns or scalds. As the dementia progresses their muscles become weaker so their mobility becomes poor. Their ability to swallow can be affected so they could choke very easily. Their sleep can be affected as well leaving them tired and irritable. The person can also forget to eat or drink and they can become dehydrated or malnourished. So their over all health can …show more content…
Early signs of dementia can be missed appointments, forgetting to take medication, not part taking in social activities, being withdrawn, confusion and being irritable. The person with dementia can become depressed and have very low self esteem. They can feel worthless because they can not carry out the very basics of active daily living.
In Maslow Hierarchy of Need he states there are five basic needs these are Physiological which is food sleep water. Safety which is security of resources, security of family and of health. Love which is friendship family and intimacy. Esteem which is self-esteem, respect of others and confidence. Self-actualization which is problem solving and creativity.
Maslow looks at the physical, emotional, social and intellectual qualities of the
Dementia is a serious disorder caused by a variety of brain illnesses which affects a person memory .There are three symptoms stages which are early,middle,and late stages. A Person with dementia lose the ability to think well enough to do everyday activities or solve problems. It is also difficult for a person with dementia to interact with others which makes this disease overwhelming for the families of the Patient. The number of people who have dementia is currently estimated at 47.5 million.
There are different types of dementia and are described as follows: Fig 1.2 (a) different types of dementia with their percentages There are different types of dementia are Alzheimer’s, vascular, mixed, dementia with lewy’s body and frontotemporal dementia etc. and there are other types of dementia too such as AIDS dementia, Parkinson’s dementia etc. The Alzheimer’s is most common form of dementia. Let us describe the each of them in detail: Alzheimer’s dementia: Fig 1.2(b) area of brain affected and cross-section that is seen from the front in Alzheimer’s dementia.
What do you know about Alzheimer's? Alzheimer's is a progressive disease that attacks the brain and affects all aspects of a person's life, it is fatal and made up mostly of memory loss and confusion symptoms, which increase as time goes by. My research on dementia has helped me broaden my understanding of the short story "Babysitting Helen". It taught me that Helen's symptoms, memory loss and confusion , trouble performing day-to-day tasks, and repeating of actions and words are normal for people with dementia or Alzheimer's.
OGO3 meron Dementia Dementia is a mental disease where you lose some maybe all of your memory for a long period of time or even eternity rly symptoms can occur for some people and can include behaviour swings and anxiety or even blindness. There are many different types of dementia and some of them include the mo common Alzheimers Disease which takes up 70% of all the people that have dementia, vascular dementia, Frontotemporal dementia, Lewy body dementi a and many more, these often occur over the age of 60 but it is possible to also get it if you are young. 90% of people with Parkinson 's disease will get the exact same symptoms as people with dementia would get It 's possible to get more than one form of dementia. Alzheimers disease Alzheimer 's disease
There are may different types of dementia, it is an umbrella term that covers Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. They all cause permanent damage to the brain, but have different
This makes it more difficult for the body to kill the harmful bacteria. Compounding this issue are a less powerful immune system and a slowed process of digestion, which allows the bad
In this report I am going to assess ways in which different types of dementia affect an individual and also the individual’s family and friends. Due to the symptoms and consequences of dementia, a major impact on individual is the feeling of insecurity and the loss of confidence in themselves and their abilities. This can increase a sense of loss of control which in turn may result in the individuals doubting themselves and losing trust in their own judgements. These problems are made worse by the reaction of the people around them that are closest to them, such as friends and family and colleagues will begin to respond to them differently and not treat them in the same way as before.
Communication Strategies Overview One of the many challenges posed by people suffering from dementia is communication. As this disease advances the brain begins to deteriorate by showing signs of lost memories, clear thought, and a lack of personal hygiene. In addition, mood swinges become evident stemming from the frustration of losing their ability to remember and communicate clearly with others. Other noticeable changes occur in the personality and behaviour patterns, such as a lower regard for personal hygiene.
Dementia is a disorder which causes the brain cells to deteriorate therefor causes a decline in several symptoms and affects a person’s mentality, capacity and how they go about their everyday life. NVQ 1.2 2) Describe the functions of the brain that are affected by dementia. There are many brain functions affected by dementia depending on which form of dementia the individual has. The temporal lobe’s functions affected are Memory loss for example forgetting things you have just been told or something you have just said so repeating yourself several times, balance, posture and vision can also be affected due to decline in health of the temporal lobe. Frontal lobe affects behaviour for example becoming withdrawn.
I. Just imagine waking up one morning and not knowing or remembering anything you did yesterday or the past years of your life? Well that’s what people who have dementia go through. They cannot remember who their kids are or anyone around them. II. Dementia effects your memory and a person’s ability to achieve a normal everyday task and activities.
The term ‘dementia’ is an umbrella term for a range of progressive conditions that affect the brain. Doctors typically use the word ‘dementia’ to describe the common symptoms such as memory loss, confusion and problems with speech and understanding. Each type of dementia stops an individual’s brain cells working in specific areas, namely their ability to speak and remember things. 1.2 -Describe key functions of the brain that are affected by dementia The brain is made up of four lobes, namely frontal, temporal, parietal and occipital, all of which have different functions.
Overall the book teaches us a number of lessons about the progression of dementia. This knowledge can be applied today in nursing practice to provide better patient teaching and understanding of the
Dementia is one of the most feared diseases and expensive to society currently. It is defined as a clinical syndrome of acquired cognitive impairment that determines decrease of intellectual enough capacity to interfere social and functional performance of the individual and their quality of life. It is a known fact that patients tend to express themselves through their behaviour and expect their carers to understand this notion. The diverse kinds of causes of different behaviours are inability to communicate, difficulty with tasks, unfamiliar surroundings, loud noises, frantic environment, and physical discomfort. Many diseases can cause dementia, some of which may be reversible.
Symptoms can be divided into three categories, positive, negative and cognitive symptoms. Positive symptoms have to do with the person’s behavior and may include delusions, hallucination, disorganized thinking, and abnormal motor behavior. Some negative symptoms would be not making eye contact or not changing facial expressions, speaking monotone, and the person might not have the ability to plan or carry out activities. Cognitive symptoms are subtle, they have trouble using information to make decisions and trouble focusing or paying attention this can make it hard for the person to live a normal life and earn a
The world is a steadily growing place with many illnesses that affect our society. One big disease that is on the rise now is Dementia. Dementia is a growing illness that effects the geriatric society. An illness that can’t be treated but can be somewhat controlled is putting a heavy burden on caregivers. Caregivers can be paid caregivers, family or even friends.