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Caregivers Creating a Safe Home for those with Dementia

Keeping Persons with Dementia Safe In & Around the Home

By RudyardPublished 4 years ago 3 min read
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When disease or injury affects brain areas responsible for various conscious and subconscious cognitive processes such as emotions and memories it leads to altered perception. The loss of memories, ability to reign in emotions and process information such as visual structure and colors may cause misrepresentation of the environmental object, e.g., a shadow as a sinister being.

Dementia, therefore, takes its toll on a person's body and general wellness, and great care has to be afforded to the patient. Lifestyle changes can help patients cope with dementia. Key among them is remodeling the home to help them navigate easily and reduce stress, stay independent and feel safe. They should be able to see clearly, be prevented from wandering off too far and any caricatures that may trigger panic attacks should be avoided.

The environment they live in has to be friendly, and therefore caregivers are using the following multi-part processes to adapt the home to the patient’s point of view.

Jane Byrne at FirstCare.ie notes that “dementia is not a disease itself, but a set of symptoms that can be caused by other diseases. Many of us have heard of Alzheimer’s, which is the most common cause of dementia, but there are also others, such as vascular dementia.”

1. Locking danger zones

Jumbled memories lead to personality changes and mind wandering. When lost in the memories a patient may physically wander off far from the house and into dangerous zones. The number one thing is the prevention of wandering off to danger zones and keeping harmful tools out of rich. Lock off doors to basements, garage, workshops and weapons compartments.

Such arrangements have to be made before moving in the place since the patient take time to adjust to changes and may not like it when it's done suddenly in their presence. Taking the patients point of view and anticipating how they're going to react to everything helps in making the right changes. Consulting with Alzheimer's specialists and aging life-care experts leads to insight on how to go about it.

2. Getting good lighting, color, and contrast

Dementia affects vision and therefore perception leading to a misrepresentation of the environment in the mind that can lead to panic attacks and safety risks. Visual deficits common in Alzheimer’s patients are:

  • Diminished ability to detect motion. Since the world is viewed as a series of still images and not continuing the video, the patient cannot follow movements clearly and gets lost in the episodes. This leads to problems especially when carrying out tasks or watching TV
  • Reduced depth perception due to inability to process spatial-temporal information
  • Diminished field of vision. Cannot process the peripheral environment well and bump into objects when moving
  • Problems with color and contrast, e.g., cannot distinguish floors from walls if they have the same color

Getting proper lighting in the house and outdoor can help see clearly and avoid misrepresentations and shadows. The light should be strong but not too bright to blind the patient. Sensor night-light bulbs have also been recommended.

3. Repair

Altered perception and misrepresentation of visualized objects means stuff such as cracks and dark spots may be misrepresented as snakes and holes and cause tripping. Repair any rough places and get rid of cables and mats that can cause tripping. The walkaway too should be made clean and not have unnecessary objects to be visually processed

4. Avoid too much information in the form of decorations and wallpapers

Keep things simple as long as it keeps the patient comfortable. Wallpaper and paint are too much to take in and result in confusion. Avoid using similar colors for walls floors and ceilings so they can distinguish between them accurately.

5. Use automation

Dementia alters temperature control; therefore, automation helps make the precise adjustment to get the room to the correct temperature. Distinct kinds of automated assistive technology include:

  • Automatic reminders and voice systems that prompt using pre-recorded messages after sensing motion or time. They can be used to alert on when to take medication etc.
  • Large clocks and calendars that display or speaks the time and help avoid losing track
  • The medication aids that store doses and shows day and time to be taken
  • Locator and tracking devices if a patient wanders far.

All in all, automation devices help locate medication, keep track of time and access food without any hustles. The critical thing to note is that useful items such as food should be easily accessible – a patient should not stand on a stool or chair to reach the cupboard. That is dangerous.

In conclusion, taking care of patients with dementia involves anticipating a lot of their needs in advance and preparing for them by making the right changes that keep them relaxed and prevent mood swings.

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