Dementia Awareness Essay

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NVQ Level 2 Adult Social Care Understand what dementia is 1.1 -Explain what is meant by the term ‘dementia’ The word dementia describes a set of symptoms that may include memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem-solving or language. Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease or a series of strokes. 1.2 -Describe the key functions of the brain that are – affected by dementia The key functions that are affected by dementia are as follows: temporal lobe which is responsible for vision, memory, language, hearing and learning. Frontal lobe which is responsible for decision making, problem solving, control behaviour and emotions. Parietal lobe which is responsible for sensory information from the body, also where letters are formed, putting things in order and spatial awareness. Occipital lobe which is responsible for processing information related to vision. Cerebrum lobe which is the biggest part of the Brain, its role is memory, attention, thought, and our consciousness, senses and movement. Lastly there is Hippocampus which is responsible for memory forming, organizing and storing and emotions. 1.3 -Explain why depression, delirium and age-related memory impairment may be mistaken for dementia This may be the case because they all share many of the same symptoms as dementia, for example depression can manifest as anxiety, irritability, sleep disturbance, changes in appetite, weight loss or occasionally weight gain, fatigue, decreased energy and difficulty concentrating, thinking or making decisions. Delirium can produce reduced awareness of the environment, wandering attention, being withdrawn, poor memory and difficulty speaking or recalling words. Age-related memory impairment can include forgetting where you left things you use regularly, forgetting names, forgetting an appointment,

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