Home Care – The answer to the woes of a Dementia Patient

Among the silent killers, dementia deserves a special mention because its effects render it easily confused with old-age issues. These effects may actually continue for several years before manifesting themselves into something more prominent.

Decoding Dementia through numbers

Dementia in itself is not a disease, in fact it is a series of symptoms such as impaired cognitive functioning, memory loss, lack of sound judgement in everyday activities or diminished thinking capabilities to the point of disrupting daily life. In most cases, people in their 60s are affected by dementia and if they aren’t, the chances keep doubling every 5 years after the age of 65. Dementia awareness in India continues to be deplorable, despite there being close to 10 million reported cases a year by 2020, as discussed in the 19th National conference of Alzheimer’s & Related Disorders Society of India (ARDSI). This number threatens to become twice as much by 2050.

Old Age vs Dementia – Why home care is suggested

Although dementia has many types, almost 50-80% dementia cases pertain to Alzheimer’s, making it the most common form of dementia. The symptoms showcased by a patient would usually be something demonstrated by most ageing people which is why it’s onset goes unnoticed by family members and the patient is deprived of timely treatment and adequate support. The only surefire way to deal with it is to get an early diagnosis done and strive to give the person the care they deserve. Some of the initial tell-tale signs may include, but are not limited to:

As the disease progresses, the symptoms become more pronounced and may branch out to further changes in personality and behaviour. Therefore, home care becomes the sole way to go about it as it is important to pay attention to even the smallest of a patient’s day-to-day activities. The World Alzheimer’s Report, 2016 which focussed on reviewing state of healthcare for dementia around the world, cited, “A high proportion of people with dementia die in hospital. Holistic, palliative, end-of-life care is less available for them, and the end-of-life is too infrequently acknowledged, discussed, and planned for.” This further clarifies how people dealing with dementia need home care more than hospital walls and round the clock support.

In the absence of commensurate care at home, the person tends to recoil into a shell or act out. In general, caregivers are trained to handle caring for the elderly. But, owing to the differences between old age and dementia, it’s imperative for these caregivers to be aware how dementia patients behave uniquely to deliver the best care at home. The constant need for empathy, the fear of rejection, the feelings of confusion, the thoughts of inadequacy at some point of time plague a dementia patient. Since there are no known cures, the least that can be done is to provide them care in a way that their everyday struggles with life are alleviated to a certain extent.

Source: hcac.in