With unpredictable mood swings and a lack of recognition of even the closest relative, Alzheimer’s disease puts the caregiver under immense pressure. To aid alleviate this pressure, the ‘Dementia Caregivers Forum’ was launched here on Monday during a one-day programme organised to mark ‘World Alzheimer’s day’.
Run by the Mangalore Alzheimer's Association, the forum attempts to connect, counsel and share experiences between those taking care of patients of dementia and experts such as Neurologists, Geriatrics doctors, Psychiatrists and social workers.
“This will effectively act as a support group which will meet once a month,” said Jerardin D'souza, founder of the association which has over 1,000 members. Among its important tasks is to arrange for ‘relief volunteers’, who can temporarily take care of the Alzheimer’s patient so that the pressure on the spouse or relative or caretaker reduces, he said.
The importance was elaborated by Misri Z.K., a neurologist, during the programme held at Kasturba Medical College, Attavar.
“More than half of the cases of moderate-to-severe Alzheimer patients are being looked after by the immediate family, and in one-third of cases, the spouses are caretakers…all in a scenario when the patient cannot perform routine tasks or even remember the names of family members,” he said.
Among the advice to the sizeable number of caretakers, who had shown up for the programme, was to mark toilets clearly as well as put up clocks and calendars as patients are liable to believe night to be day and vice versa.
