Experts estimate that at least one quarter of all hospital patients have dementia yet most hospital staff members have little formal training in this area. The typical hospital stay of a minimum of 3 to 5 days can be difficult for the person with dementia, their normal caregiver and the hospital staff member. Keeping the dementia patient safe while allowing limited freedom and making the stay a quality experience is quite challenging.
One group, The Hartford Institute For Geriatric Nursing, has worked hard to provide tips to nurses and other caregivers to make each hospital stay a little easier for those with dementia and their families. The Hartford Institute developed a series of "Try This" tip sheets, which are one to two pages in length and give a thumbnail briefing on a particular topic related to the best practices in nursing care for hospitalized older adults.
There are many terrific "Try This" sheets on a variety of topics but two that geared for the hospitalized elderly are: "Recognition of Dementia In Hospitalized Older Adults" and "Working With Families of Hospitalized Older Adults With Dementia".
The first "Try This" article, called, "Recognition of Dementia In Hospitalized Older Adults", is a two-pager with two quizes to assist the nurse or professional caregiver in finding out about the family dynamics or looking at some behavioral triggers that the person with dementia may demonstrate during their stay. This colloborative piece is put together by Mathy Mezey, EdD, RN, FAAN, New York University College of Nursing and Katie Maslow, MSW, Alzheimer's Association. The second "Try This" piece, called, "Working With Families of Hospitalized Older Adults With Dementia", gives three key tips to staff in dealing with families of patients with dementia who are hospitalized. The authors, Katie Maslow and Geri Richards Hall, PhD, University of Iowa, state the number one tip to professional caregiver staff in dealing with families of those with dementia is to ask the family about what is the normal and usual routine. With the families as the designated historian for the person with dementia, knowing what is the baseline for behaviors can help the hospital staff make the stay a little easier.
Check out all the Try This publications by visiting the Hartford Institute For Geriatric Nursing website and selecting Try This from the left navigation panel.
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