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The Palliative Care Los Angeles Team Talk about Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease
February 17, 2022
The hospice and palliative care Los Angeles staff of Faith and Hope Hospice and Palliative Care makes it clear to us that Alzheimer’s patients need extra care as their illness goes on from the early to mid-stages of the disease to the later stages. They make sure your loved one receives the care they require with daily living activities, pain management, and more during the latter stages of Alzheimer’s. The doctors and nurses talk about the signs that show the need for hospice or palliative care of your loved one with Alzheimer’s.
How Does Alzheimer’s Disease Affect Daily Living Activities
When a person has Alzheimer’s they slowly lose their ability to effectively and efficiently carry out activities of daily living (ADLs). When this happens, it can result in a family member or members having to cope with a lot more responsibility than anticipated, and hospice care Los Angeles may be the best option to make certain optimal quality of life for the patient and their family.
Particularly, hospice and palliative care providers and family members of a loved one with Alzheimer’s could lookout for signs of worsening issues with language, memory and concentration, confusion, mood changes, immobility difficulties with incontinence and swallowing, and the beginning of other illnesses. When these problems happen, hospice care and palliative care Los Angeles staff can help enhance the quality of life for the patient.
Problems With Memory
It is not uncommon to find that most Alzheimer’s patients suffer from memory loss. The memory loss is usually on and off in the early stages and gradually worsens. Once the person gets to the late stages, it can be problematic for Alzheimer’s patients to constantly remember their loved ones throughout each day. When you care for someone with memory difficulties it can be very stressful, and it is usually best to use hospice care when memory problems worsen in the mid to late stages of Alzheimer’s.
Language And Concentration Issues
Also, many Alzheimer’s patients have issues with language and concentration as their illness advances. As a result of this, caring for them can become more challenging and put a strain on the relationship they have with their loved ones. For this reason, hospice care is usually suggested when communication worries and concentration become a problem.
Changes In Mood
An Alzheimer’s patient can also experience changes in mood when entering the late stages of the disease. Particularly, irritation and restlessness are common, and the patient usually indicates their irritation and fatigue to their loved one if they are the main caregiver. When you choose hospice care for the late stages of Alzheimer’s, it lets the family members and the patient concentrate on spending quality time with one another.
Confusion
Confusion is usually linked with memory loss (or even misremembering), which happens in most patients with progressive Alzheimer’s. In the early stages, confusion is usually mild and short, and it does not seem to be a serious mental or physical health worry, thus, it only requires palliative care. Nevertheless, as the symptom progresses with the disease, it may need the help of a hospice in Los Angeles to ensure the safety and quality of life for the patient.
Immobility
One of the most evident restrictions Alzheimer’s patients’ experience is what happens to them physically. The ability to move as they want and perform fundamental tasks becomes jeopardized because of their reduction in motor skills. This makes daily tasks that we normally take for granted such as getting dressed, using the bathroom, and walking a lot more difficult. Hospice care can help with daily activities such as these and help the patient keep an exceptional quality of life as Alzheimer’s carries onto the later stages.
Incontinence / Difficulty Swallowing
Many late-stage Alzheimer’s patients experience incontinence too. Along with medical support, hospice Los Angeles nurses and other staff members can make sure the problem does not influence the nature of their day. Plus, an Alzheimer’s patient can develop the inability to swallow, and hospice care nurses can make certain patients eat and take medication as required.
Vulnerable To Other Illnesses
Patients in later stages of Alzheimer’s are more vulnerable to other illnesses such as urinary tract infections (UTI), pneumonia, and septicemia. To reduce these risks and to make sure they do not hang around if they do crop up, it is usually a good idea to work with a hospice Los Angeles provider when the disease starts to continue past the early stages.
The Challenges Of Family Care With Late-Stage Dementia
Family members should not feel it is only their responsibility to care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s. The final stages of Alzheimer’s need professional hospice care to ensure quality of life for the patient, and receiving this help means that family members can concentrate on spending significant time with their loved one.
Faith & Hope Hospice and Palliative Care provide hospice and palliative care services in Los Angeles for individuals diagnosed with an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s disease. Contact us today to discover more about the benefits of hospice care for your loved one.
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