When your loved one no longer recognizes you BY ERIN FAIRCHILD
As many as 6 million people in the United States are currently living with dementia: 6-to-8 percent of people over the age of 65 and nearly 30 percent of those over 85 have dementia. Dementia and the vulnerability it imposes on its victims is one of the most profound hardships endured by the fast-growing population of Americans over 65. The condition slowly robs people of their dignity and their life-long memories — memories that make them who they are or at least who they were. “The impact of dementia is so great; it deeply affects not only the patient but also the patient’s family and loved ones,” said Dr. George Taffet, geriatrician and chief of the Geriatrics Section at The Methodist Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine. “The families feel powerless as they see their father, grandmother or spouse grapple with the frustrations of being aware of their own mental decline. Then, the dementia robs the awareness as the one they love slowly fades away.”
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What is it? Taffet says dementia is a manifestation of a number of progressive neurological disorders with symptoms that include memory loss; loss of the ability to problem solve, perform normal daily activities and control emotions, among other things. Personalities may change. Patients may become agitated, delusional or see things that are not there. Geriatric patients often are plagued with a myriad of afflictions that can be devastating to their quality of life and their sense of independence. Diseases that are common in the elderly run the gamut of medical specialties — from rheumatology to endocrinology to psychiatry. At Methodist, geriatric patients have access to world-class physicians, leading-edge technology and research, and an extensive array of patient services to address their health concerns. The Methodist Hospital ranked in geriatrics on U.S.News & World Report’s
“America’s Best Hospitals” list because it provides excellent geriatric clinical care and because of its comprehensive centers in areas that most affect older patients such as neurology, heart, cancer and orthopedics; and palliative care, rehabilitation and pain management services. For patients with dementia, there are medications and treatments available to help reduce the neurological decline for some types of conditions, but oftentimes some of the best medicine is the use of support services to help those with dementia live with it. Methodist’s Institute for Palliative Medicine encompasses an interdisciplinary team that includes medical professionals, social workers, chaplains and therapists to work in conjunction with medical treatment to provide support, while addressing physical, psychological and quality-of-life issues often faced by patients with dementia. Having a solid support team in place is critical VOLUME 4, NUMBER 4 䡲 27
