Sundowning and Dementia: What to do About Late-Day Behaviors For those with dementia and their caregivers, the late day hours can often be a disorienting, stressful time. When the sun goes down, individuals with dementia may become agitated, restless, confused, irritable and at times even delirious—seeing and hearing things that are not there—to a greater extent than they do early in the day. This symptom of dementia is known as “sundowning” or “Sundowners Syndrome.” For individuals with dementia and their caregivers, it can be a scary, upsetting nightly occurrence. Read more
15th Annual Katz Policy Lecture: National Family Caregiving Strategies and Policy Recommendations from the RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council This year, the 15th annual Katz Policy Lecture, sponsored by AARP Ohio, will examine the RAISE Family Caregivers Act, which directs the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop and maintain a national strategy to recognize and support family caregivers. The Act identifies actions that communities, providers, the government and others are taking to help family and friend caregivers, and aims to improve information sharing, collaboration, government support and assessment of caregiver programming across these efforts. Our keynote speaker, Alan B. Stevens, PhD, will discuss family caregiving strategies and policy recommendations from the RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council, and the impact these will have on our communities. Following our keynote speaker, a reactor panel of industry experts will give their responses to the presentation, and discuss how the Act impacts different types of individuals and communities, as well as state level policy. Read more
Evidence-Based Programs: How They Help Caregivers of People Living with Dementia Dr. David Bass, Senior Vice President, Senior Research Scientist and Director of the Center for Research and Education at Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, discusses evidence-based programs, how they can help individuals with dementia and their family and friend caregivers, and how to access them in your area. This video was developed as a part of the Expansion of Dementia-Capable Communities within Urban and Rural Settings in Ohio using Evidence-Based and Informed Programming project, funded by the Administration for Community Living, Alzheimer’s Disease Program’s Initiative. Read more
Creative Arts Programming for Older Adults Finding meaningful ways to engage with an older loved one can be a challenge, especially during the pandemic. For those looking for an activity to do together with a loved one—whether indoors or outdoors—creative arts may be a good place to start! Helping a loved one get in touch with their creative side can offer many benefits and may be easier to do than we think. Read more
Communicating a Loved One’s Health and Dementia Behaviors to Children Finding out that a family member has dementia and providing care for them can be full of both challenges and meaningful moments. It also impacts the whole family. When we add children into the mix, certain situations can get even more difficult to handle. Many of us may be struggling with how to communicate a loved one’s health or dementia-related behaviors to young children, such as a loved one’s grandchildren, especially regarding what to say and how to say it. However, having these important discussions can also be a positive shifting point in our relationships with them. Read more
Making the Transition to Long Term Care a Successful Choice Have you made the decision to transition your loved one to long-term care? This can change your role as a caregiver and return your relationship with your loved one to one that is more personal and familial. How can you make this a decision that both incorporates your loved one’s preferences and supports their personal values? This webinar will discuss important topics for this transition, including the assessment process, how to communicate with long-term care facilities and care planning. Read more
I Can’t Be the Caregiver Anymore: How to Transition from Your Role Becoming a caregiver to an older loved one is a big commitment, and like other commitments in life—wedding vows between spouses, the responsibilities of parenting—it can often feel binding. Many of those who become caregivers do so with the intentions of staying in this role until their loved one passes away. However, this is not always possible or realistic. Read more
Understanding and Managing Dementia-Related Behavior Changes A loved one with dementia will experience many changes as the disease progresses. Though dementia is most commonly associated with memory loss, the changes dementia causes to the brain impact more than just memory—personality and behavior can be affected as well. We may feel that a loved one with dementia isn’t “acting like themselves” or that their actions might be “uncharacteristic.” Sometimes this can manifest in small ways, like being less alert than usual, or being more talkative around strangers. Other times, they may say or do something much more difficult to handle, like having an outburst of anger in public or making a sexually inappropriate comment. Read more
The Caregiver’s Guide to Estate Planning When was the last time you and your loved one had a discussion about estate planning? If you’re like many people, it’s probably been a while. This webinar will discuss what important financial and medical documents are necessary in case of an emergency, and what to do in those situations. Having these items prepared and organized will not only protect your loved one, but as a caregiver it will give you peace of mind to know that everything is taken care of in advance. Read more
Behavioral Interventions When Caring for Someone with Dementia This webinar incorporates the most current research about dementia care, effective practical strategies, and useful resources in identifying causes of common behavioral symptoms and effective interventions. This program, initiated as part of a grant awarded to the greater Toledo area by the U.S. Department of Human Services, Administration for Community Living (ACL), Alzheimer’s and Dementia Program Initiative incorporates curriculum from the state of Minnesota, Act on Alzheimer’s, and we are now excited to present this as a part of the new ACL project to expand dementia capable communities in Cuyahoga, Washington, and Athens counties. Read more
