The common picture that gets into our head the moment we see a senior adult with Alzheimer’s disease is an unruly adult with a difficult behavior. It is synonymous to an older individual who keeps on forgetting things and repeating themselves endlessly. With this in mind, we can only imagine how hard it is to deal with these situations.

Mostly, it is the caregivers who can experience the wrath of senior adults throwing tantrums or the unlikely behavior they exhibit for no apparent reason. Considering the complexity of tasks, our caregivers and healthcare professionals at Supreme Touch Home Health Services Corp,the leading provider of home health care in Columbus Ohio, aims to train our staff on how to deal with these patients properly.

What is the common behavior among seniors with Alzheimer’s disease?
In medical terms, Alzheimer’s disease is defined as an illness in the brain wherein neurons die. Because of the degeneration of neurons in the brain, it would impede the normal function of it; hence, the reason why seniors become forgetful and they have memory lapses.

Moreover, seniors also exhibit unwarranted behaviors that might not be easy to deal with. These behaviors can include the following:

1. Communication problems
   • a.forgetfulness when it comes to dates or information
   • b.inability to utter the words properly
   • c.incoherence in speech due to the loss of focus and train of thoughts
   • d.lack of comprehension
2. Behavioral problems
   • a.wandering around aimlessly in different problems
   • b.vulnerable to depression
   • c.hiding things
   • d.repeatedly doing things
   • e.imagining unusual things
   • f.throw tantrums sporadically

These behaviors are difficult to handle. When senior adults start to do something that they do not normally do, it would be hard to stop them.

Talking to them might be useless because they refuse to listen or they simply just cannot understand. In addition, their behaviors may change without us knowing, that is why it is very difficult for us to determine whether they are acting up or not.

How can caregivers effectively manage their patients?

As healthcare professionals, it is our job to pacify them. It does not really mean that we control them. Instead, it means that we should come up with various methods of handling their behaviors.

You also need to know how to approach them. The key to effective home care is to know and understand your patient. You have to always appear calm and patient towards them so that they will not be hostile towards you. You also have to be very careful with your words and tone, so as not to scare them off. Lastly, if talking to them cannot calm them, you have to divert their attention to doing other tasks or let them stroll around the place.

For more useful tips about handling patients with Alzheimer’s disease, ask our professionals at Supreme Touch Home Health Services Corp, your partner in home health care in Columbus Ohio. For details, you can visit our website www.supremetouchcare.com or call us at 614-488-2266.