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Thursday 11 December 2014

What aspects do you need to consider when providing activities to people with dementia?

There are various aspect you should consider when providing activities to people with dementia. You should always apply person centred approach while providing activities. Maintaining dignity and independence is very important in this exercise. You will have to aware of their interests and preferences and cultural backgrounds before arranging activities. And that is why you may need to study their biography or past history or ask their family or friends about their interests and preferences if direct communication with the person is being failure. Age, professional background and intellectual level of a person is recommended to consider as well from my point of view. Such as, a retired university’s dean, an author or highly intellect person may not be encouraged to your bingo, card game, baking a cake or gardening activities. Therefore you have to find out and arrange an appropriate activities for them. You also need to maintain and encourage to use their existing skills. If their common interests and preferences doesn’t match one another and age, cultural backgrounds, medical history, professional backgrounds restriction interrupts then you may need to make different groups to provide appropriate activities.
Safety is your main concern while arranging activities. You have to make a safe place and environment for this. First, you have to measure the risks if there is any involved and eliminate it accordingly or minimise if it is not possible to eliminate. You also need to allow service users or clients to take risks according to their capabilities, but your observation and assistance should be near at hand on instance.
 
Empathy is also a vital part of this exercise. Therefore your practice need to be inclusive. You have to interact with everyone to feel them valued. Showing empathy is become a part of minor dilemma sometimes. Author Foisal Talukdar’s Theory “Empathy (different Psychology applies on different individuals of different types of dementia or any other brain diseases). Some people may shout you back while you are being empathetic to them. It does mean they feel they are capable of doing things their way and their sense, feelings, self- confidence and self-pride still active in their part of the brain. Your approach should be empathetic from your behalf but not to displayable by words or any action to feel them that they are now the subject to receive your sympathy”. Anyways, I have gone far away from this topic. All you need empathy and understanding of different types of dementia. Such as a person with Parkinson disease may not be able to hold things right way or a person with Alzheimer disease may withdraw himself all on a sudden in the middle of your event or a person with challenging behaviour may start shouting at everyone. All of these you have to take into consideration before you start and provide activities accordingly.
Key Points:
·         Maintain Independence and Dignity
·         Maintain and Use Existing Skills
·         Age Appropriate
·         Culture Appropriate
·         Take into Account Likes
·         Take into Account Dislikes
·         Health and Safety Issues
·         Allow Person to Take Risks where appropriate
·         Empathy
·         Knowledge of the Different Types of Dementia.