Dementia and Its Challenges
Dementia is a neurological syndrome that affects a person’s ability to think, remember, and make decisions. It often interferes with daily life activities, and as dementia progresses, people require further support and assistance.
Whilst there are over 200 different subtypes of dementia, the most common types are Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. Diagnosing dementia is a life-changing event that affects the emotional, physical and general functioning of the person and their family.
Common challenges that people living with dementia face include:
- Memory loss and confusion
- Problems with spatial awareness
- Difficulty speaking, expressing or understanding words
- Getting lost in a familiar environment
- Experiencing delusions or paranoia
- Impulsive reactions
- Expressing unrelated thoughts or talking about childhood characters or events as if they were happening in the present
- Loss of balance and problems with coordination
With the right care and support, people with dementia can live an independent and quality life in a safe and familiar environment in their own home.
Live-in Care for Dementia
Live-in care provides round-the-clock support for people with complex care needs, including dementia. With a live-in care team, people can receive all-encompassing and compassionate support in the comfort of their own home. A live-in carer strives to soothe the symptoms of dementia while keeping the privacy, dignity and independence of the individual in their familiar surroundings.
Caring for people with dementia can be a challenge for family members as the process often requires constant and regular support to meet all the needs of their loved ones.
Transferring to a residential home can cause emotional and physical distress for the person with dementia due to the change in daily routines and familiar surroundings. Therefore, live-in care is often a better option for people with dementia.
Live-in care teams provide person-centred care to people with dementia, providing multi-faceted assistance to people who need extra support to manage daily tasks.
Benefits of Live-in Care for Dementia
Live-in care entails proactive support for people with dementia, providing safety and peace of mind in the comfort of their home while being close to their loved ones. Live-in carers provide support with daily living activities and household tasks but also foster independence as much as possible to improve the quality of life of individuals with dementia.
Let’s find out the key benefits of live-in care for people with dementia and how Unique Community Services can improve the quality of your loved one’s life.
Personalised Care and Support
Person-centred care and support are essential in live-in care. Support workers are extensively trained and committed to providing care tailored to an individual’s unique needs, desires and preferences. With personalised care, live-in carers look at people as a whole, fostering their skills, strengths and interests to provide the best quality of life possible.
Additionally, person-centred care entails compassion and emotional comfort, ensuring the person with dementia gets all the attention they need. With people-focused care, support teams entail activities to include active engagement of the person in the local community.
24/7 Supervision and Support
Dementia care at home provides 24/7 supervision and support. The goal of round-the-clock care is to promote an individual’s independence and general well-being using a compassionate and humanised approach.
Dementia care teams design unique care plans centred towards a person’s individual needs, caring for all aspects of their life.
Here are several benefits of 24/7 care at home for people living with dementia:
- Personal Care
- Medication administration
- Health appointments management
- Teaching life skills
- Promoting independence
- Companionship
- Implementing a Positive Behaviour Support Strategy (PBS)
- Waking night emergency
- Finance management
- Social care and engagement in the community
With 24/7 support at home, you will receive one-to-one care and support that embraces all aspects of your life, including physical assistance, emotional comfort, and improved quality of life.
Improved Quality of Life
Evidence-based research shows that live-in care is the preferred choice of care among older people, compared to residential care. Upon realising their loved one will need ongoing one-to-one care, many families believe a nursing home is their only choice. However, the latest studies show that older people with additional care needs, particularly people with dementia, enjoy a much better quality of life with live-in care teams at the family home.
Following the results and positive outcomes, we outline some of the many benefits of person-centred care at home:
- Significantly improved quality of life and general well-being
- Safer environment and reduced risk of falls
- Lowered numbers of hospital admissions
- Lowered risk of depression and anxiety
- People are happier and more satisfied with the received care
- Reduced decline in function in individuals with dementia
For every person with complex care needs, the most important thing in their life is to receive proper care at home, close to their family and loved ones.
Promoting Independence
Live-in care provides a dedicated team of support workers who strive to promote your loved one’s independence as much as possible.
The support workers implement activities your loved one enjoys, including gardening, walking, and other hobbies. Fostering independence in people living with dementia is very important and helps build a meaningful and fulfilling life.
Living with Dignity
The progressive stages of dementia can affect a person’s sense of dignity and self-awareness, leading to depressive or even aggressive actions and reactions. For that purpose, live-in carers provide personalised care to promote dignity and resilience in people with dementia for as long as possible.
Well-trained and skilled carers have experience dealing with behaviours of concern and emotional challenges of people with dementia. The goal of live-in care is to help maintain a positive outlook on life and active engagement in activities to reduce or prolong the decline in cognitive function in people with dementia.
Importance of Choosing the Right Live-in Care Provider
Many families struggle with finding the best dementia care provider for their loved ones. Whilst choosing the right live-in care practitioners may be a challenge, it’s essential to get as much information as possible before making this important decision.
When choosing your live-in care provider, the most important thing to consider is your loved one’s needs, what kind of care you would like them to have, and what type of care they would prefer. At Unique Community Services, we provide experienced and professional teams who can help promote independence while delivering necessary support to your loved one. With our person-centred and humanised approach, we provide safety and peace of mind for people with dementia and their family.
Making a Positive Impact with Live-in Care for Dementia
Looking for trustworthy and CQC-regulated support services in the UK? Unique Community Services provides complex and proactive care and support for people with dementia and complex care needs.
Our team of experienced professionals is committed to providing the highest standard of care, ensuring a sense of safety and peace of mind for you and your loved one. From personal care to medication administration and assistance with household tasks, we provide person-centred care tailored to your unique needs and preferences.
At Unique Community Services, our goal is to promote independence while respecting your privacy, dignity and human rights. We provide emotional support and mental health support to people with additional and complex care needs.
Unique Community Services offers short-term and long-term live-in care for people of any age and level of service needs in Bristol and Manchester.
Contact us today, and we will design a care plan designed to your needs and preferences.
