Dementia Care

People living with dementia can benefit greatly from remaining in their own home when their care needs increase. A familiar environment is reassuring to someone who feels that it is becoming harder to make sense of the world around them, so if your loved one is in this position, you will want to find the best dementia care provider you can. However, there are some key questions to ask before choosing a private live-in care company.

Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia bring challenges both to the person with the condition and to the people who are close to them. Every individual with dementia has different needs, wishes and experiences, which is why a person-centred approach to care is so important. To provide the best care for elderly people living with dementia, the caregiver has to understand the person, be aware of their history, their likes and dislikes and what is most important to them.

Dementia live-in care can provide all the care and support needed to allow your loved one to remain in the safe and familiar surroundings of home, even if they need quite complex care interventions.

People living with dementia often find change confusing and threatening. This is why arranging for care in their own home can be the best possible option if they are no longer be safe to be left alone. Live-in care is gaining in popularity, and specially trained staff are available to provide Alzheimer's support as well as other types of care.

Dementia can have an overwhelming impact on a family's finances. As many as 750,000 families are caring for a loved one with dementia in the UK, and many of these are not eligible for the financial help they need. Of all the people who receive care, 41 per cent have to fund this themselves. It is likely that the same percentage applies to those who need Alzheimer's care.

If you have a loved one who is living with dementia, you will want to ensure that they enjoy the best quality of life they can. Care at home is an ideal solution, but finding a caregiver you can rely on to provide support and companionship 24 hours a day is not always straightforward. There two main options when searching for a live-in carer for your loved one; private arrangements or employing a specialist care provider.

There are many things to consider when deciding on a live-in care provider for your loved one. The right support can help those with dementia to continue to live their lives as independently as possible. There are various details that you will want to check before selecting a provider so that you can find the best possible option for your family member.

People with dementia can often be negatively affected by having to move into a residential care home, and while it may seem like an obvious solution to keep your loved one safe, there is a better alternative. As many as 97 per cent of older people say that they want to stay in their own home, and remaining in familiar surroundings can help your loved one to maintain a level of independence for longer.

If your loved one is living with dementia, it can be difficult to work out how to pay for the care they need. Enabling them to remain in their own home with 24/7 support from a live-in carer is the ideal situation and there are various ways this can be arranged.

When asked, most older people say that they would prefer to receive any care needed in their own home. However, staying at home is only practicable with the right support, so if your loved one is living with dementia, you will want to explore the differences between home care and live-in care before making any arrangements for them.

People with dementia experience many problems, both with memory and with cognition. Alzheimer’s disease is the commonest form of dementia, but there are other types including vascular dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies. People with Parkinson’s disease can also develop dementia. Whatever your loved one’s specific diagnosis, if they are living with this condition, they are almost certain to need care and support as it progresses.

There are many differences between dementia live-in care and nursing homes. If your loved one receives a diagnosis of dementia, this is not a signal that they have to be admitted to a nursing home. Some people can continue living with dementia in their own homes for many years, and when independent living becomes too difficult, there are ways to provide appropriate care at home.

There may come a time when we realise our parents or relatives aren't able to live alone any longer. Old age and age-related issues such as Alzheimer's create safety concerns, and these become a constant worry. However, we neither want them to move into a home nor do they wish to live in residential care. The question then arises whether live-in care is an option. Can care given by a live-in caregiver be a better option, and is it an affordable one?

Changes associated with ageing can include the slowing down of the brain and body. This is not necessarily anything to worry about, as the individual's intelligence remains unchanged, but it can take longer to process information. Memory changes may also occur, and many older people have difficulty remembering things such as place names and the names of people.

Dementia in its mid-to-late stages and Alzheimer's can present a whole spectrum of behaviours. It can make people feel lost, confused, anxious and frustrated, which can result in physical manifestations of these feelings, as well as angry outbursts and suspicious behaviour.

A diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease can be painful and upsetting, both for the person receiving the news and for their family and friends. You will almost certainly be concerned about how this condition will impact their day-to-day lives, both now and as it progresses. Alzheimer's Disease affects a person's memory but it can also mean they struggle with routine daily tasks such as washing, dressing, cooking and eating, and they may no longer be able to continue living independently. They might also exhibit challenging behaviour, which can be difficult to deal with.

Alzheimer's Disease has been linked to many lifestyle factors, and diet is one that many researchers believe could make a difference. A healthy lifestyle is thought to help to lower a person's risk of developing dementia, and current recommendations include exercising regularly, eating healthily and not smoking. Experts also say that maintaining a healthy weight, drinking only in moderation and ensuring your blood pressure stays in a healthy range are also important.

As our parents age, a certain degree of forgetfulness is to be expected. Other issues such as advancing technology can also make doing certain everyday tasks difficult, and this can lead to frustration and anger. The big question is how to tell the difference between typical age-related changes and actual dementia-related symptoms? It's important to know because if symptoms of Alzheimer's are detected early enough, interventions can delay the onset or advancement of the condition. In turn, this leads to a longer and more independent lifestyle.

Caring for elderly parents is a role reversal that few people find particularly easy. For those of the older generation, it means having to give up a degree of independence and their life-long role as the parent figure. For the adult child, taking on the responsibility of parenting your own parent can be difficult to come to terms with. However, there are steps you can take to minimise the problems.

As we grow, our nutritional needs change, from birth through to a senior age. Eating well is important for all ages to provide the right nutrition for health, vitality and quality of life. Unfortunately, many older people, for a variety of reasons, are not eating as well as they could, which leads to poor nutrition or, in some cases, malnutrition, which can be mistaken for an illness or disease itself.

People tend to use the words 'dementia' and 'Alzheimer's' interchangeably, as though they are the same thing - in fact, this is not the case.

Your local authority will provide a free assessment of your loved one's needs on request and will draw up a care plan for you. This will determine how much help might be available from state funding. If your loved one receives financial assistance, you do not have to spend this sum on local authority services and are free to arrange private care if you prefer.

Although a good diet cannot slow the progress of dementia, it can make a big difference to the overall health and quality of life of someone receiving care for the condition. Eating habits can change with age; some people find their appetite has reduced, or their sense of taste and smell isn't what it once was. Combined with dementia, this can lead to problems, and without the right support, those affected by the condition may lose interest in food or simply forget to eat.

Elder’s expert dementia home care advisors answer questions for hundreds of people looking for care for themselves or their loved ones every day. Below you’ll find the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions that our customers ask before making the decision to use Elder to take the stress and strain out of caring for someone in need.

It's understandable to question the reasoning behind a diagnosis of Alzheimer's or dementia because of the degenerative nature of the conditions and the limited availability of effective medical treatment available. While this may appear a potentially sound argument at first glance, in practice it could be catastrophic for the individual involved and their family when dealing with these cognitive challenges.

Sundowning is a distressing symptom that affects people in mid- to late-stage Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. Also known by the term 'late-day confusion', it refers to the agitation and confusion often experienced by those with dementia towards the end of the day - hence the term 'sundowning'.

Lewy Body Dementia is a degenerative brain disease which shares symptoms with other conditions, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. These can include problems with thinking, understanding and memory, as well as confusion, hallucinations, poor sleep and difficulties in movement including tremors, slow movement and stiffness.

There are different ways of categorising the stages of Alzheimer's Disease, but the three-stage model is commonly used for understanding the disease progression and where your loved-one is within it. Naturally, individuals with the disease will all have a different experience, and not everyone will experience all the symptoms.

Most elderly people worry about the possibility of developing Alzheimer's or another form of dementia as they age. Any lapse in memory can trigger concern that dementia is setting in, but this can simply be a sign of ageing. We take a look at the signs of Alzheimer's and examine what symptoms could denote a trip to your GP.

There are four main types of dementia that cause similar symptoms which become progressively worse over time, making it difficult to determine, in the early stages, what type they're suffering from or whether they're just experiencing forgetfulness that affects us all.