- Title
- Dementia 14 essentials of assessment and care planning
- Creator
- Brodaty, Henry; Connors, Michael; Pond, Dimity; Cumming, Anne; Creasey, Helen
- Relation
- Medicine Today Vol. 14, Issue 8, p. 18-27
- Relation
- http://www.medicinetoday.com.au/2013/august/article/dementia-14-essentials-assessment-and-care-planning#.U_0FbxAatvA
- Publisher
- Medicine Today
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2013
- Description
- Many GPs report a lack of time and confidence in diagnosing dementia. Fourteen practical points are described to guide the assessment and care of patients with cognitive decline. Key Points: Signs of possible dementia should be taken seriously; timely diagnosis is important to allow patients to be treated and patients and families to prepare for the future. Take a detailed history and perform a standardised test of cognition and a mental and physical examination. Diagnose the dementia cause; investigate for reversible causes and rule out other diagnoses, such as delirium, depression and drug adverse effects. For patients with dementia, discuss key issues including daily living, legal and financial affairs, the transition from work and driving, and the stress on supporting carers and family. Assessment should culminate in a care plan, with strategies to manage specific symptoms, support for the patient and family, regular monitoring and referrals to support groups and organisations. As symptoms and challenges change over the course of dementia, the care plan needs regular review.
- Subject
- dementia; diagnosis; cognitive decline; neurocognitive disease; Alzheimer's disease
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1066957
- Identifier
- uon:18298
- Identifier
- ISSN:1443-430X
- Language
- eng
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