Level 2 Dementia Units
Candidate Name:
J/601/2874 Level 2 Dementia Awareness
1. Understanding what dementia is
1.1 Dementia are the signs and symptoms caused as a result of specific diseases such as Alzheimer’s or a stroke that involve the damaging of brain cells; as the brain cells die the person with a dementia will lose their ability to carry out their every day tasks such as personal care and interaction with other people as different parts of the brain are damaged. Dementia affects both older and younger people and the decline in the person will get worse as more brain cells are damaged or die.
1.2 The main areas of the brain that are affected by dementia in terms of causing difficulties with their functions are: Frontal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls behaviour, movement, personality and the interpretation of what is around us
Parietal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls the language we use, spacial awareness and recognition of places, objects and people. Occipital Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls eyesight and our ability to see Temporal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls our speech, hearing and memory
1.3 Depression can sometimes be mistaken for dementia because with dementia a person’s behaviour and feeling of well-being can change and cause the person to appear withdrawn and this for example might be mistaken for depression. However, if the person is depressed then it could be the depression not the dementia causing them ill-being.
Delirium for example can be brought on as a result of an infection and this might be mistaken with dementia because for example the person could become confused and suffer with memory loss which are also signs and symptoms of dementia. It is very similar for age-related memory impairment; if someone becomes forgetful they might think or others might think they have dementia because a lot of people associate dementia with old age and memory loss but younger people can be affected
J/601/2874 Level 2 Dementia Awareness
1. Understanding what dementia is
1.1 Dementia are the signs and symptoms caused as a result of specific diseases such as Alzheimer’s or a stroke that involve the damaging of brain cells; as the brain cells die the person with a dementia will lose their ability to carry out their every day tasks such as personal care and interaction with other people as different parts of the brain are damaged. Dementia affects both older and younger people and the decline in the person will get worse as more brain cells are damaged or die.
1.2 The main areas of the brain that are affected by dementia in terms of causing difficulties with their functions are: Frontal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls behaviour, movement, personality and the interpretation of what is around us
Parietal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls the language we use, spacial awareness and recognition of places, objects and people. Occipital Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls eyesight and our ability to see Temporal Lobe – this is the part of the brain that controls our speech, hearing and memory
1.3 Depression can sometimes be mistaken for dementia because with dementia a person’s behaviour and feeling of well-being can change and cause the person to appear withdrawn and this for example might be mistaken for depression. However, if the person is depressed then it could be the depression not the dementia causing them ill-being.
Delirium for example can be brought on as a result of an infection and this might be mistaken with dementia because for example the person could become confused and suffer with memory loss which are also signs and symptoms of dementia. It is very similar for age-related memory impairment; if someone becomes forgetful they might think or others might think they have dementia because a lot of people associate dementia with old age and memory loss but younger people can be affected