One Big Happy Family!

Neuro Note #1 - Grandkids and Grandparents

My "Nan"

The title of the article I chose to dive into was called, "OT's Role in Helping Grandkids Understand Dementia". I chose this article because I am very close with my current grandparents, and in the future if anything were to happen, I would love to help them and be as active as I could to assist them to feel empowered through this season of their lives. I believe that young Ryann would agree to that statement as well. I also chose this article to further understand the caregiver-family-patient-therapist dynamic better. Education is one of the most powerful tools we can offer to our patients and caregivers in order to make them personally feel comfortable, as well as our client.

In this article, one of the biggest points I have learned is that when we are treating the client, we are impacting all of their loved ones as well. As we know, grandparent’s pride and joy are their grandkids. This is why I believe that if they are at all involved it could truly boost morale as the client is going through these current and future changes. The article discusses that the simplest things like showing the grandkid and family members how to manage the wheelchair, lower/rise the bed or just participating in small at home interventions like singing, steadying cups and cuddling can truly allow the grandparents to feel engaged daily and encouraged. This is a small portion of our role as an OT by helping heal the souls of all parties involved.

Overall, Occupational Therapists are to provide the caregiver and family with a comfortable environment by giving them a better overall understanding of the process that will take place with that specific disease, how to encourage a stress relieving environment, and the physical changes to expect. These details will endorse confidence, empathy, understanding and empowerment which is solely rooted in what sets Occupational Therapy services apart from others. If you are looking to review this article, click here to follow the link. The article also provided a children's book by author Kathryn Harrison that can further explain the expectations of a grandparent with Dementia and Alzheimer’s. It is called “Weeds in Nana’s Garden” – click here to check it out.

 

Motr/L, M. C. (2019, February 11). OT’s Role in Helping Grandkids Understand Dementia. Seniors Flourish. https://seniorsflourish.com/kidsanddementia/