Mental Health: Alzheimer’s Disease
Order Instructions:
A patient has been admitted to the mental health unit with a diagnosis of bi-polar disorder. During a meeting the family inquires about the use of alternative therapies. Based on your readings and knowledge discuss what the RN would teach the patient and family and incorporate modalities, usefulness, effectiveness and how to increase compliance with therapeutic modalities
Alzheimer’s is a condition that is increasing in incidence in our population. There is no differential diagnosis so the start of the disease may go unnoticed. Once the manifestations become more apparent it often places a tremendous strain on the caregiver. Caregiver role strain is a nursing diagnosis that is frequently applied in the situation. Since patient wandering and confusion are common for the patient with Alzheimer’s disease what would the RN teach the family about maintaining a safe environment? Discuss the support systems that are available to families
SAMPLE ANSWER
Mental Health: Alzheimer’s Disease
Memory loss is a critical manifestation of Alzheimer’s syndrome. The condition places patient at the risk of harm from the environment. For instance, impaired memory would predispose people to practices such as leaving their electrical appliances running and unattended. Teaching care givers on approaches of protecting their patients would be a necessary health management plan.
Registered nurses should teach families of Alzheimer’s patients to keep abreast with their loved ones. Families should know their role on monitoring their patients so that they do not hurt themselves when performing basic duties such as cooking and driving. Also, families would be advised to promote the safety of their patients’ environment by installing appliances that can shut automatically when left unattended (US National Institute of Health, 2010, Pg. 14). The nurses would also advise patient families to limit the exposure of their loved ones to wandering as the practice would place them at the dangers of getting lost or encountering accidents. Families would do so by providing the needs that would motivate patients to wander.
Caring for Alzheimer’s disease patients is often challenging for families. It is therefore necessary for them to seek support systems for the activity. Available support systems include voluntary groups and friends who would offer to help for services such as cleaning and shopping for the patients (Robinson, Wayne, & Segal, 2015). Healthcare professionals would also be of substantial support as they would help families to monitor the progress of their patients. In addition, families could exploit support systems such as workshops that train people on care giving skills (Robinson, Wayne, & Segal, 2015). Other approaches include exploring online materials and books that address the management of Alzheimer’s disease.
Reference
Robinson, L., Wayne, M., & Segal, J. (2015). Support for Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers: how to get the caregiving help you need. Helpguide.org. Retrieved from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/caregiving/support-for-alzheimers-and-dementia-caregivers.htm
U.S. National Institutes of Health. (2010). Home safety for people with Alzheimer’s disease. National Institute on Aging. Retrieved from https://d2cauhfh6h4x0p.cloudfront.net/s3fs-public/home_safety_for_people_with_alzheimers_disease_2.pdf
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
