There is an urgent need to equip caregivers to better respond to and care for persons living with dementia. Traditional training models have focused on the number of classroom hours an individual must spend in training, assuming that a person who completes the required training hours is ready to work successfully with people living with dementia. The shift to competency-based training improves dementia care by focusing on mastery of tasks and tools that are learned.
Why Competency-Based Training Improves Dementia Care
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, dementia care, Senior Care Professionals, care staff, dementia, caregivers, compassionate touch, Dementia Live, leadership, Hospital Professionals, dementia training, staff
I was privileged to speak yesterday to the Dallas Area Parkinson's Society (DAPS) about how care partners can embrace wellness and joy. For persons living with Parkinson's Disease and other neurological conditions, finding wellness and joy in everyday life can be challenging and elusive at best. I know this first-hand, as my mother lived with Parkinson's Disease (PD). Speaking from experience as her partner in this journey, my words of wisdom for embracing wellness and joy encompassed some simple steps.
Topics: The Faith Community, AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, dementia, Care Partners, compassionate touch, Parkinson's Disease, wellness, Joy
How Can We Lovingly Embrace the Ending...Tips for Families
What is a harder conversation topic with elderly parents - money or death? If you guessed death, you get a gold star. Why do we find it so very difficult to discuss the inevitable? Surely we've all come to grips with the fact there is one thing certain about life and that is death. We can embrace the ending by learning to embrace the life that we still have with our loved ones until the times comes when they are no longer with us.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, memories, caregivers, compassionate touch, Faith Community, Compassion, families, End-of-life, death
Parkinson's Disease and Dementia - What you Need to Know
Eldercare is becoming more about caring for those with dementia. Because our fastest growing segment of the population are those 85 and older, it correlates with the rise in people living with dementia. In fact, one in three people age 85 and older are living with some level of dementia. There are over 1 million Americans living with Parkinson's Disease and over 10 million worldwide. This number is also rising with the increase in longevity.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, dementia, Care Partners, Dementia Live, leadership, Parkinson's Disease, family caregivers
Have you Heard of Dementia Friendly Purple Table Reservations?
I just learned about the Purple Table Reservations program and was beyond excited to learn and share with my readers.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, The Family Caregiver, Senior Care Professionals, Dementia Live, dementia friendly, Dementia Friendly America, Purple Table Reservations, Dining
The Fear of Dementia and How We Must Redirect our Thinking
I had a few "Aha" moments this past weekend that made me realize just how prevalent the fear of dementia is in our society, and how we must redirect our thinking in order to transform how we look at Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Aging in the Workplace, Training, dementia, Care Partners, caregivers, Dementia Live®Training, leadership, Alzheimer's disease, Caregiver Training, alzheimer's, Fear of Dementia, Dementia Awareness, education and training
How do Caregivers Walk in the Shoes of a Person with Dementia?
Walking in the shoes of someone living with dementia is challenging at best, especially since every person, like shoes - is different! There is an urgent need to help professional and family caregivers communicate and respond to the needs of their care partners. A walk in their shoes is a powerful and very needed training and education tool to help others develop understanding, empathy and improve care.
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, dementia, Care Partners, caregivers, Dementia Live, Dementia Live®Training, families, understanding, Dementia simulation
How Can We Improve the Shopping Experience for People with Dementia?
Studies affirm that almost 80 percent of people with dementia listed shopping as a favorite activity. At the same time, 63 percent of people surveyed didn't think that shops were doing enough to help people with dementia.
Topics: Senior Care Professionals, Training, dementia, Care Partners, dementia friendly, Employees, understanding, older adults
What's it really like to live with dementia? To cope with the anxiety, embarrassment, feelings of loss and hopeless that can so often accompany the progression of dementia. There are far too many caregivers today who are struggling with truly understanding the depths of living with cognitive decline and sensory changes. Instead caregivers try to cope with what's on the surface. Transformation takes place when caregivers change how they think, feel and act!
Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Training, dementia, caregivers, leadership, Hospital Professionals, Caregiver Training, Dementia Live Training, understanding, education and training
Considering Retirement? This Might Change Your Mind
I wonder if "retirement" will be one of those words that get's shelved as such a "twenty-tens" thing. Why the buzz about nixing retirement?
Topics: Senior Care Professionals, Aging in the Workplace, dementia, Alzheimer's disease, aging, activities, health, Work, AGeucate Training Institute, retirement