sunnystdnt

Geri-psych facilities focus more on their behaviors then? I think the nurse manager did suggest one but patients transferring out of the hospital have priority so he probably wouldn't get in. The other places though are the same as the one he's at now. Thanks for both of your responses.

That makes sense. I get that they would ask her for advice on activities to keep him busy (ie, hobbies and the like pre-diagnosis) and they have and she gave them a list of interests he has. A lot of the things he liked to do before he can't do now because his cognitive skills are just not the same and he gets frustrated because he knows it. And in this instance, they specifically want advice for his bad behavior. Like what to do when he yells at nurses. Or what to do when he refuses doctors appointments. They also let her know how uncomfortable he makes some of the aides because he thinks they are his wife sometimes. Are there other things besides redirection that they can do? I just want to get a feel for techniques they can use so she can give them some ideas besides redirection. Every time he gets moved to another place it really messes with him and I think that should be last resort, in my opinion. But I'm not an ltc nurse so my opinion doesn't really mean anything in terms of rules or protocols or anything. I'll look into specific Geri-psych units around here, though, that's a good idea.

I'm a pre-nursing student but this topic doesn't have anything to do with my studies, but rather LTC protocol. First, let me give you some background: my grandfather was diagnosed with dementia about 3 years ago and has been to many different LTC facilities including rehab (since the initial fall which lead to diagnosis of dementia), assisted living, a more controlled assisted living place specifically for Alzheimer's/Dementia patients, and now a secured Alzheimer's/Dementia nursing home. The place he is at now is trying to convince our family that he needs to yet again move to another LTC facility because of bad behavior. After meeting with other places the nurse suggested he move to, they ultimately said he would receive no better care or no different care than what he is getting now. So my question is why would they suggest him to move? We understand he can be very combative at times; (which I'm guessing is somewhat normal for dementia patients) he refuses medicine, doctors appointments, bathing, etc. They've upped his Seroquel numerous times but the PA at the nursing home has told us he won't up it anymore because he's not sure the reaction it will have with his heart medicine. They are constantly calling my mother with lists of bad behavior, asking her for advice. My mom doesn't know what to do, or what advice to give them. She is inexperienced with dementia and since I'm not yet in the nursing program, I'm also unfamiliar with the lingo and also not quite sure how she should handle talking to them. The nurse manager has told us redirection usually works with him, but I think they are frightened of him. By the way, he can't walk, he is in a wheelchair and has lost the majority of his weight since his fall, he is very frail and is 85 years old. Is it normal procedure for LTC facilities to move patients to other places that they see are "too hard to handle"? What other things can they do besides redirection? I know LTC is very very fast paced and busy so maybe they don't have time or people to give him the care he needs, I'm not sure. That's why I'm asking. I'm actually really interested in getting into geriatric nursing when my schooling is done mainly because of my grandfather's diagnosis. It's a very strange disease.