Vascular Dementia Case Study-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Vascular dementia case study. Answer: Introduction: Old age comes associated with many a complications and complexities which restricts and even deteriorates the living conditions of the patients drastically. It has to be understood in this context that the impact of these health conditions is paramount on the wellbeing and living conditions of the elderly population, and the restrictions imposed by the many health ace complexities often are the reason for extreme psychological discomfort and dissatisfaction in general (Ahtiluoto et al., 2010). And among the different health care complexities that are regularly affecting the elderly population in the first world countries, dementia can be considered the most impactful and detrimental to the overall health and wellbeing of the aging population (Barnes et al., 2012). This report will analyse the impact of vascular dementia on the overall health and wellbeing of an elderly individual taking the aid of a case study. Vascular dementia and link with case study: This assignment will focus on the issue of vascular dementia which is one of the most common causes of dementia among the majority of the elderly population. On a more elaborative note, the vascular dementia can be defined as the multi-infarct dementia which is also considered to be the second most common cause of dementia in the elderly population. Along with that another common reason behind the late diagnosis of this type of dementia is due to the fact the symptoms are very subtle and are not drastic by any means as they are for Alzheimers. And that is the reason why the elderly patients are not diagnosed with this particular disease, until it is in a significantly severe condition (Diniz et al., 2013). This case study represents an elderly patient named Molly Namatjira who had been living with her niece Alice and her husband at the age of 68. The patient in the case study had been diagnosed with vascular dementia only recently and the disease had already incorporated a vast varie ty of different restriction in the living characteristics of the patient. A few of the restrictions that the patient regularly faces is not being able to take transportation due to weakness left behind ion the left side of her body due to the strokes. The patient also had been suffering from various emotional mood swings during which the patient becomes very difficult to control and the niece and her husband that had been hosting the patient in their house had also been overwhelmed by the struggles. The patient had been presented to the health care facility after having a severe epileptic seizure and along with that she had to get several stitches to her elbow as well due to the injury she sustained during the episode. From the case study it is apparent that the patient had many a different health issues prevalent in the case study of the patient and therefore there is needed for assessment of the different health issues and individual and targeted care plan for each of the issues. Health issues faced by the patient: It has to be understood that in the present condition of any patient going to complex health acre adversities with many a complications, the assessment of all of the different health complications is very important for the treatment plan to be efficient. It has to be understood that for the elderly populations, there are various stereotypes in the aging populations regarding the health behaviours and outcomes. Hence it is very easy for the elderly patients to misinterpret the different signs and symptoms and it significantly decreases the ability of the elderly patients to communicate and understand the different diseases and their onset, which impedes the effective assessment procedure (Enache, Winblad Aarsland, 2011). Therefore, for elderly patients comprehensive assessment is very crucial, including longitudinal patient history and mental state examinations; along with that care needs to be taken to ensure that the subjective and objective data is being gathered from a variety of sources to avoid the risk of misdiagnosis. It has to be mentioned in this context that vascular dementia is caused by interruption of the blood supply to the brain tissues, especially due to frequent stokes or TIAs, and hence the health issues exhibited by such a patient will be multidisciplinary as well. The very first of the health issues that the patient is exhibiting is the restricted mobility due to the weakness in the left side of her body due to the strokes and not being able to take any transportation. It has to be understood that stroke can cause severe brain tissue damage in patients and depending on the severity of the stroke; the loss of mobility can be a very common aftermath. Along with that vascular dementia can also cause unsteady gait which can also contribute to her difficulties in mobility and her inability to public transportation (Iadecola, 2013). Emotional instability is another very common clinical manifestation of vascular dementia; it has to be understood that vascular dementia impairs the ability of the patient of cognitive memory and recognizing abilities and it can be very frustrating for her everyday activities significantly. Which can bring forth irritability and helplessness which in turn an manifest the emotional instability and dynamic mood swings; which has been the second health issue faced by the patient in the case study. The patient had been presented to the health care facility for the epileptic seizures which are very common aftermath for vascular dementia. Along with that the patient had also sustained an injury most preferably due a fall for the seizures for which she needed several stitches. Hence the repercussion of the seizure and proper wound management represents another set of health issues for the patient (McMurray Clendon, 2015). It has to be understood that dementia or vascular dementia precisely is a very commonly reported heath concern for the aging population of Australia. According to the Australian bureau of statistics, the dementia is the leading cause of death in Australia as per the data of 2013. In the year of 2015, dementia had been the cause of death of roughly 160000 aged Australians. Moreover, the age group of 60 to 70 is the most plausible age at which the early onset of the disease is reported. With time as the population of Australia is aging further, the statistics are worsening further; and the women are far more at risk than men in Australia with respect to mortality risk to all kinds of dementia including vascular dementia (Abs.gov.au., 2018). Rate of dementia in Australia (Abs.gov.au., 2018) Treatment and management strategies: Pharmacological: The very first health issue exhibited by the patient had been the epileptic seizure that the patient suffered, and the biggest risk for the patient was trauma and suffocation. The treatment interventions must include administration of medication like the TegretolorCarbatrol, depakote, valium, zarontin, and valproic acid (Bahar?Fuchs, Clare Woods, 2013). The next intervention criteria must focus on the wound management and pain relief for the injury that the patient got due to the seizure. The pain management medication that can be used include morphine, ibuprofen, Tylenol (Baskys Cheng, 2012). The restricted physical mobility due to the tissue damage by the multiple strokes. Hence, the eventual pharmacological intervention needs to focus on the improving her mobility. Although there are no significant pharmacological interventions for this issue, selective serotonin reuptake therapy can be utilized in an attempt to aid neurogenic recovery of the patient (Bahar?Fuchs, Clare Woods, 2013). Nonpharmacological intervention: Vascular dementia is associated with emotional instability as well which demands the aid of non-pharmacological interventions. Confusion, trouble with understanding and remembering simple instructions and restlessness is the main contributor to the random emotional swings that the patients go through. Relaxing therapies and reorientation of the physical environment of the patient in an attempt to relax the patient and help her cope can be a significant non-pharmacological intervention (Gitlin, Kales Lyketsos, 2012). Along with that it also needs to be mentioned that the behavioural and psychosocial disorders are characteristics of the different dementia related disorders are very common; and in this case as well the patient had been suffering with emotional and behavioural challenges. There are many non- pharmacological BPSD therapies which can benefit the patients effectively, and these therapies include music therapy, which has been proven to reduce the agitation and depression in the dementia patients positively (Orgeta, Spector Orrell, 2011). Another very important non-pharmacological intervention for these patients had to be tailored activity therapy which will attempt cognitive rehabilitation for the patient as well. According to the Ueda et al. (2013), the impact of this occupational therapy has been evidenced to be extremely effective for the vascular dementia patients. Appropriate services: First and foremost, it has to be mentioned in this context that the patents in this case study had been discharged after primary caring and treatment activities, the patients will be needing extensive aged care facilities. There are various residential home based care packages for the aged patients in Australia, for instance, the Australian government subsidized home care packages can be beneficial for the patient in this case. It has to be mentioned that for the patients over the age of 65 can avail My Aged Care (MAC) packages (Myagedcare.gov.au., 2018). Another very useful service that can provide assistance to the patient can be the Dementia Behaviour Management Advisory Service or DBMAS, which will provide counselling therapies to cope with the behavioural issues and mood swings that the patients had been going through had been due to the dementia. However, it has to be mentioned that support program to assist molly will need to be culturally competent, hence care services will n eed to co-ordinate with the standards of PICAC (Partners in Culturally Appropriate Care), it has to be mentioned there are specific guidelines for the CALD groups for the dementia care that they receive and the co-ordination between MAC and PICAC can provide the care benefits that the patient will require. National disability insurance scheme is another benefit provided by the Australian government for the dementia patients, although only patients under the age of 65 experiencing early onset of dementia can access these benefits; as the patient in the case study is 68 years old, she is not eligible for the services provided by NDIS. On the other hand the National aged care advocacy program can help safeguard the best interest of the patient along with reducing the financial burden by associating government subsidies (Agedcare.health.gov.au., 2018). And the collaboration of PICAC and MAC will be enough for the residential support and care needed in the daily activities. For the peer support for Alice and Max, Dementia Australia provides many support programs that can help them understand how to handle dementia patients and how to cope with the behavioural issues (Dementia.org.au., 2018). Communication: The behavioural issues and seizure undoubtedly increase the plight of the family members of the dementia patients, and often it might feel like a huge psychological burden. However, with the right communication strategies the patients can be easily calmed and controlled. In this case both the family members of Molly need to be informed about the psychological impact of dementia on patients. They have to understand that dementia may cause the patient to completely forget their importance or place in her life. Along with that, this cognitive disability also incorporates a sense of extreme helplessness and agitation in the patients. However, the family members need to be educated and informed about the different communication strategies like simple language, nonverbal cues of communication, warm and compassionate body language, compassionate and empathetic communication techniques can be extremely beneficial (Vasse et al., 2010). Lastly the most important skill that is required for caring for Molly is patience and resilience, with a little help they can understand the suffering of molly and can care for her more effectively. Conclusion: Dementia is considered to be the most detrimental age derived health disorder due to the fact that it gradually diminishes the ability of the patient to think and remember anything. It has to be mentioned in this context that the loss of cognitive functions like thought process and memory is more than enough to have a grave impact on the daily life of the individual of the patient. Along with that, it has to be mentioned that the there are different kinds of dementia and each one is associated with individual sets of complexities associated with the entire scenario. This report discussed different acre aspects and needs of vascular dementia patients and it can be stated that there are many options available for such patients, with the right strategic actions Alice and Max can easily care for her. References: Ahtiluoto, S., Polvikoski, T., Peltonen, M., Solomon, A., Tuomilehto, J., Winblad, B., ... Kivipelto, M. (2010). Diabetes, Alzheimer disease, and vascular dementia A population-based neuropathologic study.Neurology,75(13), 1195-1202. Bahar?Fuchs, A., Clare, L., Woods, B. (2013). Cognitive training and cognitive rehabilitation for mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia.The Cochrane Library. Barnes, D. E., Yaffe, K., Byers, A. L., McCormick, M., Schaefer, C., Whitmer, R. A. (2012). Midlife vs late-life depressive symptoms and risk of dementia: differential effects for Alzheimer disease and vascular dementia.Archives of general psychiatry,69(5), 493-498. Baskys, A., Cheng, J. X. (2012). 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