week 3 Flashcards
what is dementia
syndrome in which there is disturbance of multiple higher cortical functions, including memory, thinking, orientation, comprehrenshion
most common types of dementia
- Alzhiemers disease
- Vascular dementia
- Dementia with Lewy bodies
risk factors for dementia
- Multiple transient ischaemic attacks (TIA) or strokes –for vascular type dementia
- Repeated head trauma (Alzheimer’s disease & dementia related to Parkinson’s disease).
- Strong family history
- Prolonged hypertension
- Uncontrolled diabetes
- Atrial fibrillation
10 early indicators of dementia
forgetfullness difficulties with familiar activities language problems problems with spatial and temporal orientation impaired capacity of judgemet problems with abstract things leaving things behind mood swings and behavioural changes personality changes loss of initiative
other conditions that mimimic symptoms of dementia but can be treated
- Hypothyroidism
- Normal pressure hydrocephalus
- Syphilis
- Brain tumour
- Subdural haematoma
- Depression
- Side effects from prescribed or other drugs
- Delirium resulting from an acute illness
differences between demential and delirium
- People with Mild and moderate dementia usually are alert and can attend to questions and cognitive tests.
- People with Delirium are usually either hyper aroused or drowsy and easily distracted, clouding of consciousness
how is dementia diagnosed
- Family history
- Duration of symptoms
- Mini- mental state examination
- Neuroimaging: brain CT or EEG scan- exclude stroke, tumors, subdural, determine atrophy
- MRI- Magnetic reasonce imagery demonstrates pathological or other physiologiaal alterations of living tissues to rule out vasculitis
- PET- position emission tomography
- Blood test (rule out reversible causes eg infections
whats the most common for of dementia
alzhiemers disease
what is alzheimers disease
- Plaques and tangles develop in the brain, leading to death of brain cells.
- Shortage of some important chemicals in the brain that transmit messages
- Is a progressive disease
how many stages are there of dementia
early stage
moderate or mid state
sever or late stage
whats early stage of dementia
- Impaired mental ability, mood swings
- May lose interest in activates
- May show poor judgement
- Blame others for stealing lost items
- May get more irritable
- May repeat themselves or lose thread of conversation
whats moderate/mid stage of dementia
- Behavioural disturbances usually increasingly develop ◦ Be confused in time and place
- Forget names of family members
- Leave saucepans and kettles on stove, leave gas on
- Wander the streets, maybe at night
- Behave inappropriately (hide possessions, wear
- inappropriate clothes)
- Become very repetitive
- Neglectful of hygiene or eating
- Become angry, upset or distressed. Easily frustrated
whats severe/ late stage of dementia
- Various other body functions such as swallowing and the excretion process
- Loss of independence in managing everyday life eg cant remember having eaten
- Altered perception and social relationships eg no recognition of family and friends, restless, fail to recognise familiar items
- Dependent on care eg bathing, toileting, dressing
- Physical problems eg falls prevention
care/family member issues of people with dementia
- Exhaustion
- Sadness/ grief
- Confusion (whats going on)
- Isolation and loneliness
- Role change
- Fear of future
- Mental health issues (depression
occupational therapy assessment for dementia
- Cognitive screens/assessments: eg MMSE, Cognistat
- Assessment of motor and process skills (AMPS)
- Personal activities of daily living (PADLS)
- Domestic activates of Daily living
- Driving assessment
whats a carer
: a person who through family relationships or friendships, looks after a frail older person or someone with a disability or ongoing health condition.
whats carer payment
- Provides financial support to people who are unable to work due to full time daily care of someone with severe disability/medical condition/frial aged.
- Fortnightly payment $700, career can work 25 hours per week including transport.
- Will also receive career allowance
whats carer allowance
- fortnightly income supplement for parents or carers providing additional daily care and attention to an adult or dependent child with disability or a medical condition, or to someone who is frail aged.
- Can work with care allowance, not taxed, $130 per fort night
- Has no impact on ability to work
direct taskes of carers
- Assistant in home, community education setting for all ADL
health/ medical care - Transport
- Support
- Surveillance for safer or to manage risk
- Can happen night or day
indirect tasks of carers
- Participation responsibilities for persons skill development and maintain/ improve health
- Advocacy- service advocacy
- Organising the service system around care recipient
- Managing people within those service systems eg explaining to people at the supermarket why someone is acting in a particular wat
- Financial responsibility eg pension
- Coordinating and meeting the needs of other family members as influenced by disability/person
what is cognition
thinking, remembering, reasoning, decision making and making sense of the world
whats structural capacity
persons limits in processing info, skills, challenges
whats personal context
personality, coping style, values, motivation, emotions