Caregivers need community links
Center provides respite, support, and education
Fatigue is a common side effect of caring for a loved one who has a chronic disease or ailment. Family caregivers are overwhelmed by performing the tasks of daily living and providing medical care for the patient, and they burn out.
"Often caregivers pass away before the person they are caring for, even though they have been the healthier of the two," says Bonnie Baird Smith, SSW, executive director of Sunshine Terrace Adult Day Center in Logan, UT.
The anecdote to caregiver fatigue is time off, she says. That’s why she started an adult day care center in 1984. The center cares for adults of all ages and has clients in their 20s and as old as 107. About two-thirds of the day care clients have aging spouses who suffer from sleep deprivation and need time alone to rest without the worry of the care of their loved one.
Although most of the clients are at the center from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., overnight care also is available. Overnight stays were added when Baird Smith determined that many family caregivers had not attended family weddings, reunions, or visited friends in years because they could not leave their loved one alone.
Education enhances respite service
Yet the center is much more than a baby-sitting service. Caregiver education is a key component, and workshops, conferences, and support groups are offered. For example, caregivers need to learn how to communicate with someone who has had a stroke or has Alzheimer’s disease.
Often a caregiver will set off a catastrophic response by trying to correct a loved one who has Alzheimer’s disease. Constantly reminding the patient about things he or she should know can cause weeping and sobbing or anger. Rather than bluntly telling an Alzheimer’s patient that he knows his mother is dead, it is much better to simply say, "I am sure your mother is a wonderful person," explains Baird Smith. The education is both formal and informal, with many tips given to caregivers as they are observed at the center or over the phone when they call for advice.
Patients receive stimulation, rather than custodial care. Most adult day care uses bingo games and crafts to entertain patients. Yet, dementia patients cannot participate in either very well.
"We provide a barrage of stimulation to help the recipient focus at their highest optimum level," says Baird Smith. This includes guest speakers who give educational lectures and slide shows.
Often, weekly activities center around a theme. For example, during science week, a professor from the local university brought a wind machine to the center to show patients how wind is produced.
During heart week, patients studied the romantic and physiological heart. One day they went to the hospital to tour the cardiology lab and see a short film on the heart. One outing is usually planned each week. Another day they dissected deer hearts (saved from hunting season) and looked at a model of a heart. Also, they listened to their heart with a stethoscope. For the romantic side, every day different patients told the group how they fell in love. If the patient couldn’t communicate, staff asked family members for the story and then retold it to the group.
Music therapy through sing-alongs also is a common activity. However, stimulation activities don’t always focus on the entire group. They are also designed to meet the needs of small groups and individuals as needed. For example, one woman who was easily agitated could not sit still for more then a few minutes. Staff worked with the woman finding soothing classical music with nature sounds that soothed her. They played the music while giving her a shoulder massage, and she was able to fall asleep and rest.
"We try to focus on what the patient can do, therefore, our activities are educational as well as entertaining," says Baird Smith.
You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
- Award-winning Medical Content
- Latest Advances & Development in Medicine
- Unbiased Content