Essay On Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's Disease
Central Carolina Community College
Alzheimer's disease is a form of dementia that affects the brain cells causing memory loss and behavior changes. According to the Alzheimer's Association, about 200,000 people that are younger that 65 have early symptoms of Alzheimer's. Symptoms of Alzheimer's include the decreasing ability to carry on conversations, lack of response to one's environment, and declining cognitive abilities. Generally, Alzheimer's begins with the person forgetting or not being able to retain new information. As the disease worsens, the patient cannot recall past events very well and has a difficult time remembering places of objects, names, and recently read material. In the final stages of …show more content…
When speaking to a resident with Alzheimer's, the NA should be in a place of few distractions and little noise. Also, the NA should use a calm voice and repeat words when necessary. When the NA wants the resident to do something, the task should be broken down into small increments that are easy to understand since the cognitive ability of the resident is impaired. However, never should the NA speak to the resident in a childish way no matter what state his mind is in. Nonverbal communication can be an effective tool for a patient with Alzheimer's as well (Hedman, Fuzy, Rymer, 2014, p. 38). Communication is vital in the patient's care plan. Therefore, the nursing assistant must communicate with the nurse and patient in order to properly care for the patient and remind the patient that he is …show more content…
The NA spends the most time with the patient so she needs to monitor the patient closely. It is important that the resident maintain a stable set of vital signs within the appropriate ranges. Any deviations from normal or normal for the resident need to be reported directly to the nurse. This care concept is very important because the NA is responsible for making sure the resident is healthy and all the body systems are functioning normally. If anything is abnormal, the nursing assistant must further observe the patient and report to the nurse. The NA report might actually save the resident's
Central Carolina Community College
Alzheimer's disease is a form of dementia that affects the brain cells causing memory loss and behavior changes. According to the Alzheimer's Association, about 200,000 people that are younger that 65 have early symptoms of Alzheimer's. Symptoms of Alzheimer's include the decreasing ability to carry on conversations, lack of response to one's environment, and declining cognitive abilities. Generally, Alzheimer's begins with the person forgetting or not being able to retain new information. As the disease worsens, the patient cannot recall past events very well and has a difficult time remembering places of objects, names, and recently read material. In the final stages of …show more content…
When speaking to a resident with Alzheimer's, the NA should be in a place of few distractions and little noise. Also, the NA should use a calm voice and repeat words when necessary. When the NA wants the resident to do something, the task should be broken down into small increments that are easy to understand since the cognitive ability of the resident is impaired. However, never should the NA speak to the resident in a childish way no matter what state his mind is in. Nonverbal communication can be an effective tool for a patient with Alzheimer's as well (Hedman, Fuzy, Rymer, 2014, p. 38). Communication is vital in the patient's care plan. Therefore, the nursing assistant must communicate with the nurse and patient in order to properly care for the patient and remind the patient that he is …show more content…
The NA spends the most time with the patient so she needs to monitor the patient closely. It is important that the resident maintain a stable set of vital signs within the appropriate ranges. Any deviations from normal or normal for the resident need to be reported directly to the nurse. This care concept is very important because the NA is responsible for making sure the resident is healthy and all the body systems are functioning normally. If anything is abnormal, the nursing assistant must further observe the patient and report to the nurse. The NA report might actually save the resident's