In her widely acclaimed Doing Things, Jitka M. Zgola offered practical and much-needed advice for those caring for persons with Alzheimer disease. Now, in Care That Works, Zgola shows how caregivers can better meet the demanding challenges of their job by building and improving their personal relationships with those in their care. Instead of simply prescribing approaches, Care That Works gives caregivers the information with which they can develop their own approaches, evaluate their effectiveness, and continue to grow in skill and insight.
Zgola explains that optimal dementia care involves three elements: a good relationship between the caregiver and the person who has dementia, a safe and nurturing environment, and meaningful activities. Evident throughout the book is Zgola's gift for compassionately portraying the difficulties faced by people with dementia and then suggesting ways to act in a manner that accords such people the respect and dignity they deserve. Topics that receive special attention include communicating with persons who have language deficits and coping with problem behaviors—two critical problems in dementia care.
Jitka M. Zgola is an international consultant and educator based in Canada. She is the author of Doing Things: A Guide to Programing Activities for Persons with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, also available from Johns Hopkins.
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgments Chapter 1. Relationships Chapter 2. Dementia: Definition and Consequences Chapter 3. Getting the Facts: History and Personal Information Chapter 4. Ongoing Appraisal of the Person's Cognitive Abilities Chapter 5. Functional Assessment Chapter 6. Preventing Challenging Behavior Chapter 7. Using Well That Which Remains: But I thought You Said He Can't Remember? Chapter 8. Responding to Problematic Behavior: A Process Chapter 9. Communication: The Heart of Relationships Chapter 10. Alzheimer's Disease and the Home: Issues in Environmental Design Chapter 11. Programming Activities Chapter 12. Why Groups? Chapter 13. When is Breakfast? Any Time You Want It Chapter 14. I Have Him Dressed – What Now?: Organizing A Day At Home With A Cognitively Impaired Person Chapter 15. Visiting Well Chapter 16. Some Lessons That Come From Caring References Index