Successful Communication with Persons with Alzheimer's Disease: An In-Service Manual

By following the recommendations in the units, nursing home staff and family members will be prepared to support patients' communication efforts and understand how to avoid disastrous communication breakdowns. A series of "how-to" in-service programs make this resource extremely practical and easy to use. Real-life examples, case studies, and scripts from actual encounters with patients help readers see how to apply concepts to the patient care setting. Self-study questionnaires, checklists, and quizzes reinforce the material. Useful, full-page charts highlight key information and are ideal as overheads in training sessions. Suggestions for group interaction, role playing, and patient activities provide strategies for effective communication. A new chapter addresses issues related to communicating with persons in the last stages of Alzheimer's disease. Two additional appendices (a Model Case Study and Sample Scripts) provide examples of how the concepts apply in real-life situations. Learning Objectives have been added to the beginning of each chapter, along with the Standard Outline, Premise, and Definitions features, to set a clear course for the teacher and student. The overheads in Appendix II have been reformatted for ready-use by instructors.