Monday, 3 September 2012

Remodelling Houses for Dementia Patients




Alzheimer’s is one the leading causes of dementia in the American population. Alzheimer’s begins late in a person’s life but in exceptional cases, it may start quite early, often affecting teenagers and young adults. Since the disease in progressive, there is no end to the downhill deterioration of the person’s disabilities. It begins with simple cognitive complications which then compounds into full blown dementia. Another bane of our times is Parkinson’s disease, which at a later stage causes dementia.

There is absolutely no cure for Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s and the symptoms of these conditions often lower the self esteem of sufferers. Caregivers have a special job to provide sustenance to the level of confidence and assist with all possible activities of the patient.
Commonly, patients are provided with mobility aids such as Chair lifts or Stairway Lifts California. Caretakers do often install in some cases. Stair lifts California are fine for stairways and chair lifts come in handy when there are no stair cases to install stairlifts. 
Stair Lifts California

How These Diseases Hinder Movement?
Both AD and PD are known to affect regions in the brain responsible for cognitive and balancing abilities. Early symptoms of the disease begin with little fumbles and missteps. As the disease progresses, the patient begin losing the very basic ability of understanding shapes and calculating spaces and distances. 

Usual problems are stiffness in limbs, bent gait, and slow motor response. Finally, the most important thing that we need to worry about people with these conditions is that they gradually lose the strength in their limbs and are incapable of acting in their best interest when they are faced with life critical circumstances. 

 In most cases, patients become entirely unable to use the bathrooms and essential services that can lead to uncomfortable situations and threaten lives on occasions. With somebody who has aged normally, one would not worry as much with AD or PD patient for obvious reasons. Hence it is very important to facilitate easy and safe movement of patients around the house and across the floors of the house. 

How to Equip the House Better?
With AD and PD patients in advanced stages of the ailment need to be placed under constant vigil. They are not to be left unattended for any period of time if possible. But as it turns out, both these diseases begin with simple debilitating side effects and at the beginning. Since patients are capable of doing most of the work on their own at this stage, caregivers need to appreciate as well as facilitate independent movement. The best tool at their disposal is beyond doubt a stairlift California! Alternately, they can also choose to install wheelchair or vertical lifts and help patients in using them.

Care must be taken not to allow patients to wander far from the home because they can get lost even in a familiar neighbourhood.

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