The actions and aids I supply for communication needs should benefit not just the individual, but the group of service users as a whole, and encourage interaction, inclusion, and social contacts. Regular reviews should be performed, to ensure that communication techniques and aids, are still adequate and addressing the individuals communication needs. Different groups who may have communication support needs could include: * A resident may have suffered a stroke, resulting in dysphasia. As a result, they may become frustrated and angry. * A resident may be suffering from confusion, either temporarily because of an acute medical problem, or as a result of dementia.
As a carer I am aware that I need to be able to understand the ways in which I can make it easier to communicate with someone who has dementia. It will become difficult for a person to tell you if they are in pain, if they are frightened or upset, so by using other factors such as body language, eye contact, gestures, facial expressions, I am able to determine these things and then I can communicate back to the individual calmly and slowly, in a manner that is appropriate to them. 1.3 Describe how to support different communication abilities and needs of an individual with dementia who has a sensory
As dementia affects a person's mental abilities, they may find planning and organizing difficult. Being independent may also become a problem. A person with dementia will therefore usually need help from friends or relatives, including help with decision making. Most types of dementia can't be cured, but if it is detected early there are ways to slow it down and maintain mental function. Dementia is a collection of symptoms including memory loss, personality change, and impaired intellectual functions resulting from disease or trauma to the brain.
People who care for dementia sufferers may find that as the illness progresses they will have to start discussions to get the person to make conversation. This is common. Their ability to process information gets progressively weaker and their responses can become delayed. Impaired depth perception, loss of vision, loss of colour vision, loss of contrast sensitivity and hallucinations are all problems that may be associated with dementia. As a carer non-verbal communication will become important, body language, facial expressions, gestures, eye contact and tone of voice will have to be taken into account when communicating with a sufferer.
It’s important you speak clearly and make sentences as simple to understand as possible when giving a service user with dementia instructions. You must also be patient when waiting for a response as it may take them longer to get across what it is they want to say, so never just pre-judge what you think they might be about to say. In the later stages of dementia, a service user may not be able to communicate verbally at all anymore. Things like picture cards, sign language or written communication at this stage could be useful for both yourself and the service user to be able to communicate with one another on a level you both are able to understand.
1.3 - Describe how to support different communication abilities and needs of an individual with dementia who has a sensory impairment A person with dementia who has a problem with their sight may need to have print enlarged for ease of reading, or possibly specialist equipment e.g. braille. It is important to ensure that any prescription glasses are available to them at all times and that they are clean. If needed read any information to the person if they wish. 1.4 - Describe the impact the behaviours of carers and others may have on an individual with dementia It could make the carers and individuals feel very vulnerable and also overwhelmed with someone that has dementia or challenging behaviour.
As well as these cognitive symptoms, a person with dementia will often have changes in their mood. For example, they may become frustrated or irritable, withdrawn, anxious, easily upset or unusually sad. Dementia is progressive which means the symptoms gradually get worse over time. How quickly dementia progresses varies greatly from person to person. As dementia progresses, the person may develop behavior problems which may seem out of character.
Outcome 1 Be able to communicate with individuals with dementia 1.1 Describe how memory impairment can affect the ability of an individual with dementia to use verbal language. In individuals who have dementia, memory impairment can make verbal communication through language difficult as dementia can cause most individuals to forget words and confuse some words with others creating confusion. For example, if you ask an individual with dementia if he or she would like a cup of tea but they have forgotten what the word tea means they won’t understand what you are trying to say, an alternative means of communication which could be more affective would be to show an image of a cup of tea and ask them if they would like a cup of tea to reinforce
Unit 371 Understand and enable positive interaction and communication with individuals with dementia 1.1 Each person with dementia is unique and difficulties in communicating thoughts and feelings are very individual. There are many causes of dementia, each affecting the brain in different ways. Some changes you might notice include: * Difficulty in finding a word - a related word might be given instead of one they cannot remember * They may speak fluently, but not make sense * They may not be able to understand what you are saying or only be able to grasp part of it * Writing and reading skills may also deteriorate * They may lose the normal social conventions of conversations and interrupt or ignore a speaker, or fail to respond when spoken to * They may have difficulty expressing emotions appropriately Here are ways to encourage communication with a person suffering dementia speak clearly and slowly, using short sentences Make eye contact with the person when they're talking, asking questions, or having other conversations Don’t make them respond quickly, because they may feel pressured if you try to speed up their answers Encourage the person to join in conversations with others where possible Don’t speak on behalf of the person during discussions about their welfare or health issues, as this can make them feel invisible and they may not speak up for themselves in other situations Don’t patronise the person you're looking after, or ridicule what they say Don’t dismiss what the person you're looking after says if they don't answer your question or it seems out of context – instead, show that you've heard them and encourage them to say more about their answer Avoid asking the person to make complicated choices – keep it as simple as possible. You may find that you'll need to use other ways to communicate, and you may have to
They may not be given the oppourtunity to be involved just because other's haven't got the time of day for them. Due to how dementia affects a client may mean they can not adjust to the time it is now and may be stuck in their past. This may mean they cannot understand what is being asked of them. 1.4 When caring for person with dementia we must remember they are an individual and need to be included in all