The World Health Organization reports that almost 10 million new cases of dementia arise each year, with 60 to 70% of overall cases attributed to Alzheimer’s disease. Individuals suffering from the brain injuries and diseases that cause dementia may struggle to function on their own, leading to heavy responsibilities on loved ones and other caregivers. Someone with dementia may suddenly struggle with tasks and decisions they managed with ease in the past, be unable to communicate clearly with others, experience significant changes in personality and/or behavior, have issues with balance and/or be forgetful about names and events.
While some forms of dementia progress slowly, giving caregivers time to gradually ramp up the amount of their care, other forms of dementia can accelerate quickly. Regardless of the speed of the onset, those who care for individuals with dementia are likely to need resources to manage the steep learning curve of and the emotional, mental, financial and lifestyle adjustments required of providing ongoing care for someone with dementia.
The state of Indiana’s website offers resources for caregivers through the INconnect Alliance at in.gov/fssa/inconnectalliance/support-for-caregivers/. These resources include an educational video series, counseling options, networks for spouses caring for a partner with dementia, financial and legal aid and a 24/7 helpline.
An array of resources is provided by the Sandra Eskenazi Center for Brain Care Innovation and its partners at hii.iu.edu/resources/abc-caregiver-handouts.pdf. This center also gives numerous recommendations, including brain exercises for patients to try. A few of these suggestions include the following:
• Read from right to left, starting at the bottom of the page and working up (may just be a few sentences at first). Do not worry about the logic.
• Perform routine tasks with the hand you don’t typically favor.
• Learn a new hobby.
• Use a new word in a sentence per day or use a new word in a different language each day.
• Try reversing lists (months of the year in reverse-alphabetical order, etc.).
• Play identification games, such as seeking out five red items in the room that will fit into your pocket and five blue items that will not in a two-minute time span.
• List all the items in a category you can come up with in one minute, working to expand that list each week, such as cities, mammals or insects.
• Play with puzzles that challenge the mind, such as crosswords or Sudoku.
According to a report from the Alzheimer’s Association this March, the biggest stressors for those providing care for patients with dementia in 2023 were dealing with costs, coordinating with various doctors, identifying the best doctor for their patient’s needs, getting appointments and managing breaks for themselves. One way to ease several of these worries for caregivers is to find the right health care team.
The Eskenazi Health Aging Brain Care program has been building on its resources and expertise for more than 15 years. Since the program is actively engaged in research, the newest techniques in dementia care can be directly applied. The team is composed of physicians, nurses, psychologists, care coordinator assistants and social workers. This diversity of backgrounds aids the team with problem solving to meet individual patient needs. By combining resources, the program also eases the burden on the caregivers who may otherwise be scheduling care with multiple doctors and organizations.
This team at Eskenazi Health paired up with other doctors and experts to develop the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center’s new dementia care and payment model. As of this July, Eskenazi Health patients can take advantage of this model, which includes approaches for keeping patients home and lowering the burden on unpaid caregivers.
For caregivers looking for a health care team, Eskenazi Health aging brain care providers can be reached by visiting eskenazihealth.edu/health-services/brain-center/aging-brain-care-program or calling 317-880-2224.
Nydia Nunez-Estrada, M.D., family medicine specialist with Eskenazi Health Center Grande