Gerontology Commons^™

Visual Hallucinations And Paranoid Delusions, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Kathleen Whalen, J. Culp

ETSU Faculty Works

Visual well-formed hallucinations, fluctuations in the level of cognition, and alertness and extrapyramidal signs are core features of dementia with Lewy bodies. Some patients realize that what they are seeing or hearing are just hallucinations and learn to accept them. Others, however experience these hallucinations as quite real and cannot be dissuaded from the firm belief that they are. In fact, efforts to dissuade them often serve only to confirm the often associated paranoid delusions and this may lead to a catastrophic ending. Hence, it is best not to contradict the patient. Instead, attempts should be made to distract the …

Insomnia And Mild Cognitive Impairment, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Kara Dickerson, C Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Kathleen Whalen

ETSU Faculty Works

Insomnia is a common problem in older people, especially in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) whose circadian rhythm is often compromised. Insomnia exerts such a toll on caregivers that it is frequently the primary reason for seeking to institutionalize their loved ones. Three different types of insomnia are recognized: sleep-onset or initial insomnia, sleep maintenance or middle insomnia, and early morning awakening or late insomnia. Nocturnal hypoglycemia, as a cause of middle insomnia, is the main focus of this case study. Other types of insomnia are also briefly reviewed. The management of insomnia is then discussed including sleep hygiene, …

Driving And Patients With Dementia, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, K. Whalen, J. Culp

ETSU Faculty Works

Driving is a symbol of autonomy and independence, eagerly awaited during adolescence, cherished during adulthood and reluctantly rescinded during old age. It is nevertheless an individual’s privilege, not right, especially as driving may affect other drivers and pedestrians on the road. It is therefore not only the individual patient who is at stake but essentially the entire community. In this case scenario, we describe the situation that arose when a patient with multi-infarct dementia wanted to go for a drive and his son and grandson tried to convince him that he could no longer drive. What went wrong in the …

Repetitive Questioning Exasperates Caregivers, Ronald C. Hamdy, J. V. Lewis, Rebecca Copeland, Audrey Depelteau, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Kathleen Whalen

ETSU Faculty Works

Repetitive questioning is due to an impaired episodic memory and is a frequent, often presenting, problem in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (amnestic type). It is due to the patients’ difficulties learning new information, retaining it, and recalling it, and is often aggravated by a poor attention span and easy distractibility. A number of factors may trigger and maintain repetitive questioning. Caregivers should try to identify and address these triggers. In the case discussion presented, it is due to the patient’s concerns about her and her family’s safety triggered by watching a particularly violent movie aired on TV. What went wrong …

An Exploration Of Dementia Friendly Communities From The Perspective Of Persons Living With Dementia, Catherine Hebert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The growing global prevalence of dementia coupled with a shift in public perception from a hopeless disease to the possibility of living well with dementia has led to the formation of dementia friendly communities (DFC). DFCs are a new phenomenon in the United States, with a gap in knowledge on input from people living with dementia (PLWD). This study investigated DFCs from the perspective of PLWD in Western North Carolina, with the following research questions:

1. How are interactions and relationships experienced by persons living with dementia in the community?
2. How is community engagement experienced by PLWD?
3. To what extent and …

Patients With Dementia Are Easily Distracted, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Audrey Depelteau, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, J. V. Lewis, Kathleen Whalen

ETSU Faculty Works

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is the middle ground between normal, age-appropriate memory impairment, and dementia. Whereas patients with MCI are able to cope with the memory deficit, those with dementia are not: Their memory impairment and other cognitive deficits are of sufficient magnitude to interfere with the patients’ ability to cope independently with daily activities. In both MCI and dementia, there is evidence of declining cognitive functions from a previously higher level of functioning. In both the conditions, there is also an evidence of dysfunction in one or more cognitive domains. There are two subtypes of MCI depending on whether …

Too Many Choices Confuse Patients With Dementia, Ronald C. Hamdy, J. V. Lewis, Amber Kinser, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Kathleen Whalen

ETSU Faculty Works

Choices are often difficult to make by patients with Alzheimer Dementia. They often become acutely confused when faced with too many options because they are not able to retain in their working memory enough information about the various individual choices available. In this case study, we describe how an essentially simple benign task (choosing a dress to wear) can rapidly escalate and result in a catastrophic outcome. We examine what went wrong in the patient/caregiver interaction and how that potentially catastrophic situation could have been avoided or defused.

A Study Of Learning Activities Of Selected Caregivers Of Alzheimer's Patients In East Tennessee, Jeannette G. Mclaughlin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem of this study was to identify and describe the individual learning activities of caregivers of people with a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and to develop an analytical description of the patterns of learning of these adults. An instrument was not available for use; therefore, a focused interview guide was developed. The interview guide was developed through consultation with several spouses or adult children caring for Alzheimer's patients, professionals in the health care field, and a review of the literature. The major analysis procedure for the study was the constant comparative method, an inductive method that has been used …