This practical guide provides general caregiving tips and helps you decide when and how to transition your loved one to a dementia care community. Caring for someone with dementia is challenging, especially when it comes time to think about other living arrangements. What do you need to know about dementia, including its different stages? What do you do if the person you're caring for seems to have trouble recognizing you? When is it time to move a person living with dementia into a senior living community? And how can you maintain your relationship with your loved one when you are living apart? Gerontologist and dementia care consultant Rachael Wonderlin has written a compassionate book to help friends and family members of those living with dementia answer these tough questions-and more. In practical, down-to-earth language, The Caregiver's Guide to Memory Care and Dementia Communities walks the reader through key points about dementia care, including * common terminology used by health care workers * strategies for taking care of your loved one * advice for when and how to transition to a dementia care community * understanding how dementia care communities are structured and what to keep in mind when evaluating them * how to help your loved one receive the best possible care while they're living apart * recommendations for handling obstacles involving communication and behavioral issues * information on technology, hospice care, programming and activities, and at-home safety A dedicated section called "Putting It into Practice" in each chapter helps you apply the principles to your own experience, while worksheets present you with questions to consider as part of the caregiving and assessment process.
Gerontologist Rachael Wonderlin (PITTSBURGH, PA) is an internationally recognized dementia care consultant who owns a senior living consulting company and runs the popular blog and podcast by the same name, Dementia By Day. She is the author of When Someone You Know Is Living in a Dementia Care Community and the coauthor of Creative Engagement: A Handbook of Activities for People with Dementia.
Foreword, by Michelle Tristani Part I. Defining and Understanding Dementia Chapter 1. Why This Book Is Worth Reading Chapter 2. What Is Dementia? Chapter 3. Causes of Dementia Chapter 4. Stages of Dementia Chapter 5. Medications Part II. Communicating with People Living with Dementia Chapter 6. Embracing Someone's Reality Chapter 7. Why Logic, Quizzing, and Reorientation Don't Work Chapter 8. Yes, and . . . : Improvisation and Dementia Chapter 9. Communicating with Someone Experiencing Hallucinations and Delusions Chapter 10. Helping with Timeline Confusion Chapter 11. Personal Preferences Chapter 12. Becoming a Dementia Detective Chapter 13. Aphasia Part III. Caregiver Stress and Choosing a Care Community Chapter 14. Caregiving Stress Chapter 15. Guilt and Taking Things Away Chapter 16. How to Handle Family Dynamics When Choosing a Care Community Chapter 17. Myths about Care Communities Chapter 18. At-Home Safety Chapter 19. When Is It Time to Move Your Loved One? Chapter 20. What Types of Communities Exist? Chapter 21. Cost of Care Part IV. Caregiving in a Care Community Chapter 22. What to Expect at a Dementia Care Community Chapter 23. Move-In Day Chapter 24. Remember That Caregiving Is an Imperfect Science Chapter 25. Visiting and Saying Goodbye Chapter 26. Day Trips and Outings Chapter 27. Activities Chapter 28. Building a Dementia-Friendly Environment Part V. Changes in Care Chapter 29. When Technology Works and When It Doesn't Chapter 30. When It's Time for a Dietary Change Chapter 31. Friendships and Disagreements among Residents Chapter 32. Sex and Sexual Orientation Chapter 33. When It's Time for Hospice Chapter 34. When There's a Hospital Trip Chapter 35. Final Thoughts and Notes Appendix. Clinical Dementia Rating Scale Index
This practical guide provides general caregiving tips and helps you decide when and how to transition your loved one to a dementia care community.
