Transitional Care for Elderly

Introduction

For elderly patients with long-term diseases, regular organized activities in a social context with other elderly people are thought to improve health and wellbeing (Lunt, Dowrick and Lloyd-Williams, 2018). Both seniors and their carers may find adult day care to be a helpful alternative. According to research, using these services promotes the physical and emotional health of elders (AARP, 2017). Seniors can overcome a variety of aging-related problems, including depression, loneliness, exhaustion, and cognitive decline, by enrolling in senior day care. Seniors can interact with others, learn new things, move around, and participate in daily activities with the help of trained carers. Even when living with illnesses like dementia, older persons who have scheduled days full of activities and time with friends seem to have better results over time. In order to prevent caregiver burnout, it can also lessen the psychological and physical toll of caregiving (Lee, Yang and Cho, 2022).

Discussion

The newest eldercare institution in Ang Mo Kio, where a significant section of the population is elderly, is Sunlove Dementia Senior Care Centre. The facility’s address is557 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10, Singapore 560557. In this facility, dementia patients with mild – to – moderate symptoms are cared for (Migration, 2015). The facility offers a full-day dementia program that aims to control challenging behaviors, offer fundamental nursing care, and enhance functional rehabilitation through occupational therapy and physical therapy sessions. The major goal of programs that incorporate mental imagery and cognitive functioning is to preserve and/or enhance elderly people’s overall physical and social wellness.

In the early stages of dementia, care is frequently given by family members. Dementia has multiple predictable transitions. The transition to one or more care settings occurs frequently in later stages. The provision of dementia care does not end with placement in a nursing facility. Hospitalizations, long-term care, and transfers between these two high-priced sites of treatment and the emergency room all play a significant role in dementia health care expenditures. However, not all elderly people with dementia incur large medical expenses, and many do not incur significant long-term care expenses (Ashbourne et al., 2021). For health care providers, administrators, and policymakers, transitions in care have emerged as a key area for quality and efficiency improvement since certain transfers to higher-cost contexts of care are avoidable or unneeded (Allen et al., 2018). Due to the high number of care transitions, concurrent medical illnesses, and severity of cognitive impairment, people with dementia may be especially vulnerable to avoidable changes in care (Callahan et al., 2015).

Strengths

Quality of care

In Ang Mo Kio, one in six people are 65 or older (Migration, 2015). With this high number of the elderly population, mild and moderate dementia cases are bound to be on the rise. The goal of dementia day care at Sunlove Dementia Senior Care Centre is to delay the decline of a person’s physical and psychological capabilities. This day care program for the elderly is designed to help elderly people with dementia stay active in both physically and mentally. It includes specifically tailored activities such as art and coloring therapy, music therapy, reminisce therapy, mind-stimulating games, physical exercises that promote motor function, and occasionally even intergenerational activities (Poon et al., 2018). When compared to employing a home health nurse or placing a loved one in a nursing home, adult day care at Sunlove Dementia Senior Care Centre is usually far less expensive (Poon et al., 2018). Our Dementia Day Care programs promote social connections and lessen feelings of isolation and rejection by offering an individualized, encouraging, and caring atmosphere. The facility provides a more tailored program in addition to flexible hours, enhancing the effectiveness of care for dementia patients as a respite service, enhancing the family caregiver’s motivation and capacity to care, and delaying the requirement for placement in a nursing home (Poon et al., 2018).

People with dementia frequently struggle to communicate, which makes pain go unrecognized and untreated. Poorly controlled pain might cause behavioral problems and result in the needless use of psychiatric drugs. The facility provides excellent dementia care in terms of pain management by:

• Treating pain as a “fifth vital sign” by routinely monitoring and managing it in a professional, systematic way, just like one would manage hypertension, respiration, and temperatures.
• Reducing the suffering brought on by pain and helping the citizens lead better lives.

Through stimulation of the brain and activation of physical potential, cognitive functions are maintained. It supports social interaction and mental health (Callahan et al., 2015). The Sunlove Dementia Senior Care Center offers a variety of dementia and Alzheimer’s-friendly activities, including cooking and gardening. Our medically qualified staff is here to help you prevent the onset of a memory disorder and maintain mental acuity.

Weaknesses

Referrals must be made through the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) to the Sunlove Dementia Senior Care Center. One may ask the social worker staff at the hospital or polyclinic for help filing the patient’s application to AIC. Those who qualify and meet the requirements of the national means test are eligible for government assistance. The day care facility at Sunlove Dementia Senior care center has longer wait times than home care agencies, which can find patients a suitable caregiver within 48 hours. Transportation is also a big issue as it involves getting the elderly in and out of the cars. Most of the elderly that are suffering from dementia are physically disabled. Most of the dementia patients prefer staying in a familiar location as it is believed to have huge mental health benefits.

Recommendation and Conclusion

In order to fully comprehend the dementia journey, we must take into account the perspectives of both those who have dementia and those who care for them. A more comprehensive understanding of care transitions can be facilitated by having a better grasp of how people with dementia engage with the healthcare system (Allen et al., 2018). To improve care for people with dementia across the spectrum, recommendations may be made using the understanding of transitions created in this study. The importance of transitions for caregiver stress and safety suggests that enhancing care transitions may also raise the standard of quality of care for dementia patients.

References

‌AARP. (2017). What Is Adult Day Care and How Can it Help Caregivers? [online] Available at: https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/home-care/info-2017/adult-day-care.html.

Allen, J., Hutchinson, A.M., Brown, R. and Livingston, P.M. (2018). User experience and care for older people transitioning from hospital to home: Patients’ and carers’ perspectives. Health Expectations : An International Journal of Public Participation in Health Care and Health Policy, [online] 21(2), pp.518–527. doi:10.1111/hex.12646.

Ashbourne, J., Boscart, V., Meyer, S., Tong, C.E. and Stolee, P. (2021). Health care transitions for persons living with dementia and their caregivers. BMC Geriatrics, 21(1). doi:10.1186/s12877-021-02235-5.

Callahan, C.M., Tu, W., Unroe, K.T., LaMantia, M.A., Stump, T.E. and Clark, D.O. (2015). Transitions in Care in a Nationally Representative Sample of Older Americans with Dementia. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 63(8), pp.1495–1502. doi:10.1111/jgs.13540.

Lee, J.Y., Yang, Y.S. and Cho, E. (2022). Transitional care from hospital to home for frail older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Geriatric Nursing, 43, pp.64–76. doi:10.1016/j.gerinurse.2021.11.003.

Lunt, C., Dowrick, C. and Lloyd-Williams, M. (2018). The role of day care in supporting older people living with long-term conditions. Current Opinion in Supportive and Palliative Care, [online] 12(4), pp.510–515. doi:10.1097/SPC.0000000000000391.

‌Migration (2015). New dementia day care centre at Ang Mo Kio adds to facilities available for elderly residents | The Straits Times. [online] www.straitstimes.com. Available at: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-dementia-day-care-centre-at-ang-mo-kio-adds-to-facilities-available-for-elderly [Accessed 8 Jul. 2022].

Poon, N., Ooi, C., How, C. and Yoon, P. (2018). Dementia management: a brief overview for primary care clinicians. Singapore Medical Journal, 59(6), pp.295–299. doi:10.11622/smedj.2018070.