What Is Memory Care?

• Providing quality nursing care for patients with Alzheimer’s or dementia can be a challenging task. That is exactly what memory care aims to achieve. 
• You may have questioned one time or another, ‘what is memory care?’ 
• Author, Katy Luggar-Schmit, breaks it down for us covering the ins and outs of memory care! 

Providing quality nursing care for patients with Alzheimer’s or dementia can be a challenging task. There are several challenges that nurses and other medical staff need to overcome to ensure they are providing the best care possible and achieving positive health outcomes for the memory care patient. 

You may have found yourself asking the question, ‘what is memory care?’ Let’s find out!

What Is Memory Care?

Memory care is a specialized type of care that involves assisting patients with memory loss as a result of having Dementia or Alzheimer’s. They may also experience memory loss as a result of a traumatic brain injury or other accident.  

The goal in providing memory care is to assist the patient in remaining as independent as possible while providing a safe structured atmosphere that meets their individual memory care needs.  

Alzheimer’s and Dementia

When considering ‘what is memory care’ , it is important to fully understand the types of memory loss one may witness among their patients. 

Alzheimer’s is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills. 

Dementia is nonspecific and is a broad term used to describe loss of memory that interferes with daily life. 

Challenges in Memory Care

When navigating the topic ‘what is memory care’, one may also wonder what the challenges are working in this type of field. 

• Increased medication refusals, as a result the memory loss symptoms are difficult to manage. 
• Increased incidents of incontinence due to memory loss.  
• Increased time spent with each patient. 
• Nursing staff may not always have specialized knowledge in memory care which results in the nursing staff lacking confidence in caring for those with memory loss. 
• A confused or agitated patient may physically attack nursing staff. 
• Patients often get restless, wander, and can be sexually inappropriate. 
• Patients with memory loss can be distrusting of caregivers. 

Overcoming The Challenges

Communication

When caring for patients with memory loss using short sentences and simple language is helpful when establishing a rapport between the nurse and patient. Having a warm tone, smiling, and eye contact are also beneficial. Keep in mind that memory care patients may take longer to respond to questions so being patient is important. 

Environmental Changes

Patients with memory loss are often triggered by loud environments. Keeping the noise levels down and maintaining a quiet atmosphere will help the patient feel more comfortable and calm. In the patient’s room it is helpful to have pictures of their family and other personal items that are familiar to them. If the patient becomes confused about their surroundings, orient the patient to their environment as often as necessary. 

Promote Independence

 Let the patient do the daily living tasks they are still able to do on their own. Be there for support but try not to over assist them. This will help reduce the chance of the patient becoming agitated and give them a sense of autonomy when they are able to complete tasks on their own. 

Toileting

Due to the increase in incontinence that is associated with memory loss it is important to offer regular toileting to the patient to be proactive and prevent incontinence as much as possible. If the patient does experience incontinence, it is important to stay calm and not become frustrated as it is out of the patient’s control. 

Staff Support

If you are caring for patients who are known to be combative, it can be helpful to have additional staff support near you when providing cares and administering medications. The patient may respond better to certain staff and in those cases, it is helpful to have that staff member nearby. Keep in mind a patient may also have a preference of male caregiver or female caregiver and it is important to accommodate this when possible.  

Continuing Education

If you feel you would benefit from completing additional continuing nursing education on ‘what is memory care’ you should do so.  

This will assist you in feeling more confident when caring for patients with memory loss. It will also give you a more in-depth understanding of what the patient is experiencing and allow for greater empathy of the patients you are caring for.  

Frequent Monitoring

To help prevent a patient from wandering or getting lost it is important to do frequent checks on them and keep their whereabouts known. There is usually support staff available to assist with this. Always ensure patient safety.  

Music Therapy

If you know the patient’s favorite type of music, playing music or having the patient sing songs can provide emotional and behavioral benefits for patients with memory loss. Research has shown that musical memories are often kept in the memory because the brain areas linked to musical memories are undamaged by memory loss.  

The Bottom Line

In conclusion, nurses can play a key role in improving the memory care patient’s quality of life by utilizing the interventions above. Caring for the patient with memory loss can be overwhelming and stressful at times, but also rewarding in seeing the difference you are making in another’s life. 

Hopefully you have a better understanding of ‘what is memory care!’ 

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