Advice for taking care of an Alzheimer's patient.
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This is a discussion on Advice for taking care of an Alzheimer's patient. in Geriatric Nurses / LTC Nursing, part of Nursing Specialties ... Hello all! I am new to allnurses. I received my LPN license about 3 weeks ago and had my first...
by andiej88 Jan 8Hello all!
I am new to allnurses. I received my LPN license about 3 weeks ago and had my first private duty shift with an Alzheimer's patient last week. She is a fall risk and I'm primarily there to keep her from falling. My patient was very sweet and cooperative for the first 6 hours of my shift, then she started to yell at me for following her to the bathroom and told the housekeeper "there's a woman in my house who's trying to murder me". I tried orienting her and told her I was her nurse. THAT DID NOT WORK! I now need a different approach with working with her. I've been trying to research ways to communicate with those with the disease, and read a few forums on here about the "therapeutic lying vs. validation therapy vs. reorientation". I really don't want to aggravate my patient, but I can't just let her walk around by herself since she's a fall risk. I'm not sure how to convince her I'm not there to murder her but take care of her. I think these feelings might really be her not feeling secure? I'm not sure how to get through to her. Any advice would help. Thanks in advance.
!
Andie
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Jan 8 by CapeCodMermaidShe's going to fall. Unless you sit on her, you won't be able to prevent it. SO...try to keep her from hurting herself if she does fall. Does she want to toilet herself? Perhaps a fluffy bath rug secured to the floor so in case she takes a tumble, she'll land on something soft. Throw a towel over the bath room door...that way she can shut the door but it won't lock.
You might not be able to get through to her. Since you're with her all day, can you do some exercises with her? Even people with dementia can benefit from strength training. -
Jan 8 by lovingtheunlovedI completely agree that she's going to fall. If someone followed me into the bathroom, I wouldn't be real cooperative either.
Sugar. Give her sugar. Food usually works, and they like sweets. I've avoided many a$$ kickings with cookies. - Jan 9 by andiej88She can make it to the bathroom on her own and use it by herself. She had a pretty bad fall in the bathroom that left her with a broken nose and bruises all over her face. The towel idea is a great idea! LOL and sugar of course!
- Jan 9 by andiej88Oh, I wait outside the bathroom. She just doesn't like me following her in general, well sometimes at least. Other times she doesn't care. I try to be with her when she's going up/down the stairs, things like that.
- Jan 9 by amoLuciaIs she starting to 'sundown' then? That'll complicate things.
Can you occupy her time with some type of activity, like 'busywork'?
