Transcript Best Practices in Care for Older Adults Nursing Assistants Session 2

Best Practices in Care for
Older Adults
Nursing Assistants
Session 2
Topic: Depression,
Delirium and Dementia
Fairfield University School
of Nursing
ELDER Project
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Depression in Older Adults
 What
A
is it?
disease with:
– Mood changes (sadness)
– Trouble thinking
– Feelings of loss or guilt
– Physical changes
– Sometimes thought of harming self
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Different Kinds of Depression



May have mild depression with a few
symptoms
May have major depression which is the
most common and can last a long time if
untreated
May have short term depression because
of something that just happened (loss of a
spouse). This is normal grief.
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What can you do?
 We
need to help older adults to
understand that depression is not a
weakness
 Depression
is a disease just like high
blood pressure!
 Encourage
them to talk to their
doctor or nurse about it
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Most Common Symptoms of
Depression
 Sadness,
Crying
 Trouble Concentrating
 Forgetful- May look like dementia
 Acting out
 Not interested in activities/hobbies
 Change in appetite (more or less)
 Change in sleep (more or less)
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What can you do?
Allow your patients to talk about
their feelings
 Don’t ignore their feelings
 Encourage them to stay involved
in activities
 If on medications:

– Watch for falls, dizziness, confusion,
changes in blood pressure
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Topic: Delirium

Sudden change in patient’s behavior

Not permanent, can be cured

Sometimes from
– Medications
– Sensory Overload
– Medical Illness
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Most at risk for delirium:

Those who have fallen and fractured
their hip
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What can you do?


Report changes in behavior immediately
to the nurse
Keep yourself and the patient safe
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Topic: Topic: Dementia
Mental Status Changes in Older
Adults
 60%
of nursing home residents have
dementia
 Dementia
is: a major loss of
intellectual abilities such as memory.
severe enough to change ability to
work or socialize.
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What you might see:
 Changes
in dressing, grooming, eating
 Not knowing who they are, where they
are, what time or day it is
 Changes in mood
 Changes in memory
 Changes in judgment
 Changes come on slowly over time
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What is Dementia?
Changes in :
– Language
– Memory
– Motion and Function
– Personality
– Judgment
Usually irreversible
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Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)
 AD
is one type of dementia
 About ½ of all dementia patients
have AD
 Don’t know what triggers it
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What can you do?
 Keep
the same routine
 Allow them to rest
 Speak slowly and clearly
 Make eye contact
 Limit choices
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What can you do?
 Keep
the person as independent as
possible
 Make
simple changes to help them
function at as high a level as possible
 You
don’t need to correct them,
sometimes it is ok to agree with
them
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Reference
The content covered in this presentation is provided
by the
John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric
Nursing (2001, 2003)

Some of the material in this presentation
obtained from graciously shared by:
Mather’s LifeWays, 2003
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