2009 October « The Professional Geriatric Care Manager’s Blog

2009 Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk Fundraiser

October 10, 2009 at 12:00 pm | Posted in Pat Linard, PR | Leave a comment

Distinctive Care Geriatric Care Management and Synergy Home Care will be participating in the 2009 Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk. To help raise money for this gracious cause, Border’s of Ramsey has joined our movement and is offering a coupon in which patrons receive a 10% discount, and 10% of their purchases will be put toward the Distinctive Care Alzheimer’s Walk team in conjunction. The fundraiser at Border’s of Ramsey, located at 235 Interstate Shopping Center, will take place on Tuesday, October 6th and Wednesday, October 7th.

The Memorial Walk will take place at Van Saun Park in Paramus, NJ, on Sunday, October 25th.

Caregiver Support Meeting

We had our monthly caregiver support meeting tonight and I feel like all the participants were really able to help each other tonight. It was a very casual meeting and we talked about what we could do for ourselves to make our jobs a little easier. I personally get a great deal out of the support group because even though I am a facilitator I am also a caregiver. My father has dual dementia – Alzheimer’s Disease and Vascular Dementia and it’s difficult to see the changes in him. He is still very functional and the medications he is on have definitely helped to slow the progression. He is taking Aricept and Namenda. I spend a lot of time worrying about him and what calamity might be laying in wait around the corner. The funny thing about it is that for people who didn’t know my father before, it doesn’t seem like he has dementia, but for those of us who know him well it is the changes in his personality that are the most troublesome. He has become someone without a filter…he speaks whatever is on his mind and like many people with dementia a part of his brain that’s damaged is the part that controls sexual inhibitions. With no filter we never know what might come out of his mouth in mixed company…stuff he never talked about before and certainly not in front of his children.

Anyway, it was good to be able to share some things about him tonight and how our relationship has changed over the course of the past year among people who really get it and who want to support you. It is nice to know that you are not alone in your worries and there are people who support your efforts.

I invite you to join us on the 1st Monday of every month at the First Presbyterian Church in Ramsey at 7pm. For more information please contact us at Distinctive Care Geriatric Care Management in Ridgewood, NJ, 201-857-5283 or info@distinctivecare.net. You are not alone out there and we want to help…

A week in the life of a Bergen County Geriatric Care Manager

October 2, 2009 at 10:30 am | Posted in Lori Habersaat, GCM | Leave a comment
Tags: GCM, Weekly

This past week was exceptionally productive, 3 new evaluations of several lovely ladies, each one with very different needs and many loving family members. Their families, concerned for their welfare, contacted Distinctive Care for our detailed home assessment and safety evaluation. S, a beautiful woman who recently is struggling with the rapid progression of aphasia and forgetfulness, J a retired professional with an intact memory but struggling with emotional and physical losses, and A joyful and pleasant but unsafe left at home alone. Distinctive Care visited all of them and is in the process of developing an individualized plan of care for each of them. Our goal is to maintain their current residence but increase their safety and provide additional needs for each one of these lovely ladies.

« Previous Page