Expressive Touch in Caregiving is Beneficial for Everyone

Posted by Julie Boggess on Mar 1, 2021 11:20:37 AM
holding_hands-400x225-1Touch connects humans to each other, reduces stress, and communicates care and concern. Don't we all need a little more of this these days?

Compassionate Touch® is an effective caregiving technique that combines expressive touch and compassionate presence.  The good- old-fashioned back rub is making its way back to eldercare, reinforcing that touch is beneficial for everyone.

But, let's not stop at the back.  Add shoulders, arms and hands, legs and feet, and now we have a powerful caregiving protocol that is easy to learn and so effective.

Eldercare providers need tools that improve the quality of life for those they serve.  Additionally, providers need ways improve the quality of the work experience for their employees.  I would argue that there has never been a more critical time than now to seek new ways to retain employees.

Compassionate Touch® hits the mark on both counts.

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Topics: Senior Care Professionals, aging services, Caregiver, caregivers, compassionate touch, caregiving, Stress, eldercare, AGE-u-cate Training Insitute, Employees, touch

Quality of Life in Nursing Homes—What Matters Most?

Posted by Ann Catlin on Nov 8, 2019 4:26:41 PM
Individual preferences determine if one feels they have a high or low quality of life.
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Topics: Senior Care Professionals, Family, Stress, Person centered care, staff, Nursing homes

Is Stress Reaction a form of Behavioral Expression in Dementia?

Posted by Pam Brandon on Feb 8, 2019 12:25:42 PM

Stress Reaction is a term being used more often to describe communication in persons living with dementia.  Behavioral expression, too, is communication.  In a growing number of circles, the term behavioral expression is being replaced by stress reaction simply because behaviors sometimes leans toward being a negative descriptive of how persons with dementia express unmet needs.

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Topics: dementia care, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, dementia, Care Partners, compassionate touch, Dementia Live, leadership, Hospital Professionals, Stress, AGE-u-cate Training, Behavioral Expression, communication

How to Put Caregiver Coping Skills into Practice - Today!

Posted by Pam Brandon on Jul 27, 2018 6:53:25 AM

Stress is simply a part of life.  Think about each and every stressor that affects our lives almost daily.  Here are just a few to think about:  traffic, annoying telemarketing calls (what telemarketing calls aren't annoying?), junk mail, the news, job demands, airline delays (let's just airports in general), and the list goes on.  Life is complicated, stressful and caregiving is even more so on just about every level.  So instead of talking about eliminating stressors, let's talk about how caregivers can put coping skills into practice so that falling into the traps of anxiety, depression and more is eliminated or decreased as much as possible.

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Topics: The Faith Community, AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Caregiver, caregivers, Dementia Live, Stress, older adults, Coping Skills

PTSD and Dementia - Is there a Link among Veterans?

Posted by Pam Brandon on Jul 3, 2018 11:25:21 AM

Independence Day is our opportunity to honor the heroic efforts of our veterans and their sacrifices in securing our safety and freedom.   These brave men and women in our armed forces face many challenges living with wounds of war, time away from their families, PTSD, often having to transition to life as civilians and the challenges of finding work outside of the military.

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Topics: Senior Care Professionals, dementia, Stress

Caregivers and Self-Induced Holiday Stress

Posted by Pam Brandon on Dec 5, 2017 1:59:20 PM

Is it any wonder that upwards of 25% of caregivers suffer from self-induced stress over the holiday season?  I was not at all surprised by  that statistic, and actually I believe it is probably higher.  Then I read that 65% of stress is due to family and in-laws!  That puts a whole new twist on WHY caregivers by and large are at great risk of stress related emotional, physical and spiritual breakdown that starts in November and last for at least 2 months!

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Topics: Senior Care Professionals, Family, caregivers, Stress

How to Improve Communications via Empathetic Listening

Posted by Pam Brandon on Nov 21, 2017 11:12:56 AM

Empathetic listening is defined as a method via which you can prevent or manage disruptive or challenging behaviors.  Caregivers can benefit from practicing empathetic listening, especially with people living with dementia.   The result will be improved communications and reduced stress for both care partners.

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Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Senior Care, dementia, Caregiver, caregivers, Dementia Live, leadership, Stress, Empathetic Listening, Caregiver Tools

What's all the Talk about Mindfulness for Caregivers?

Posted by Pam Brandon on Jul 28, 2017 10:39:51 AM

Call it awareness, attention, focus, presence, or vigilance. It's proving to be a powerful and effective practice in coping with stress.  Caregiving can easily top the charts on stress, especially for caregivers of elders with chronic illness and dementia.  Mindfulness for caregivers means learning to live in the moment, accept the reality of a situation, and filter out distractions.

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Topics: AGE-u-cate Training Institute, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Caregiver, compassionate touch, Dementia Live, Centering, Stress, families, Mindfulness

Caregiver Burnout: What to Look for and How to Help

Posted by Pam Brandon on Jul 11, 2017 7:42:20 AM

Losing sleep, poor eating habits, irritability or short tempered - these symptoms may start small and snowball quickly into what is referred to as caregiver burnout.   Professionals and families need to know what to look for and how to help caregivers.  It's a serious matter and growing, as more families are caring for their loved ones at home with little or no help.

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Topics: The Faith Community, AGE-u-cate Training Institute, dementia care, Senior Care Professionals, Family Caregiver, Senior Care, Dementia Live, Hospital Professionals, Stress, Burnout, Alzheimer's Association, elder care, education, resources, dementia training, Area Agencies on Aging

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