Free for Clients (and Staff): A Guide to Dementia Care
The dementia care journey presents many challenges for family caregivers and professional caregivers alike. A new Guide to Dementia Care developed by CareScout can help. Addressed to the family caregiver, this guide can also serve as a refresher for professional caregivers. It’s a great tool for providers to share with staff as well as clients.
If you’re a provider of home care services, you know that caring for a client living with dementia takes specialized knowledge and skill. Being able to recognize and adapt to changes in cognitive skills, personal care needs, and personality — and helping family caregivers do so as well — is often the result of years of experience as well as training.
Most people, however, don’t train to be dementia caregivers, and family caregivers can experience fear and anxiety as they face the unknown. But even experienced professionals can be challenged by day-to-day uncertainties, for all dementia caregivers are addressing similar concerns.
How can you alleviate your dementia care clients’ anxiety and help them feel better able to navigate the journey? How can you help your professional staff hone their dementia caregiving skills? A new resource developed by CareScout can help: our Guide to Dementia Care: What You Need to Know. It is addressed to the family caregiver but is suitable for all caregivers. And it’s available, free, for you to share with your clients and staff.
What’s in the guide
Guide to Dementia Care offers a comprehensive view of the nonmedical aspects of the dementia care journey. It’s a general guide that walks the family caregiver through the day-to-day of caring for a loved one with dementia at home using a person-centered care approach. Many of the tips in this guide hold true for professional caregivers as well, making it a handy refresher for possible use in staff training. Topics include:
What to anticipate, from early-stage to severe dementia
Creating safe, structured environments
Establishing calming routines
Communicating with sensitivity and care
Coping with stigma
Practicing self-care
Planning for the future
Although a dementia diagnosis signals major changes ahead, helping your clients take a person-centered approach to caring for their loved one, as outlined in this guide, can help ensure that their loved one’s goals, preferences, and values are honored every step of the way. It can deepen their partnership with you in delivering a safe plan of care. For your staff, the guide can play a role in person-centered dementia care training as they in turn partner with your clients.
The dementia care journey has its challenges, but having the right information in addition to the quality care you are already providing can help your dementia care clients enjoy their best possible quality of life.
Written by
Rob Kinslow
Rob Kinslow is a health and medical writer whose work has spanned the healthcare continuum — from primary, hospital, and home care to long-term care and senior living.
