elearn Course Catalog

Alzheimer’s Disease: Interventions for the Caregiver

The New York State Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This course has been awarded 1.2 contact hours. Contact hours will be awarded for this online course until March 1, 2013.

No commercial support was received.

Course Introduction

On June 5, 2004 Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States died of pneumonia, a complication from Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous to this, he issued a widely publicized statement in November of 1994 disclosing his affliction with AD. Over the next ten years people worldwide watched the steady decline of one of America’s most beloved Presidents. As people watched they saw the complications of the disease and the strain of care giving. Thus began increased research into AD: its origin, treatment, care giving, and a goal to find a vaccination or a cure. Upon Ronald Reagan’s death in 2004, efforts have increased to unravel the mystery of what AD is and how the disease can be successfully prevented and cured.

AD is the most common type and leading cause of dementia. An estimated 5 to 10 percent of the U.S. adult population age 65 and older is affected by some form of dementia. The older population in the United States is increasing dramatically. As of the year 2000, an estimated 35 million people were age 65 and older. Researchers estimate that by 2050, 70 million Americans will be age 65 or older (accounting for 1 in 5 Americans), and more than 19 million Americans will be age 85 and older (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009). Its current and future impact on our society can be seen in these alarming statistics from the Department of Health and Human Services (2009):

Scientists estimate that around 5.1 million people now have AD.
For every 5-year age group beyond 65, the percentage of people with AD doubles.
By 2050, 13.2 million older Americans are expected to have AD if the current numbers hold and no preventive treatments become available. This is nearly triple the current rate of AD.

A person with Alzheimer’s disease will live an average of eight years and as many as twenty years or longer from the onset of symptoms. Half of all nursing home residents suffer from Alzheimer’s disease (Alzheimer’s Association, 2009a). This disease crosses all cultural, social and economic boundaries and impacts not only the individual, but the entire family system and communities as well.

This course will address the behavioral management of communication, catastrophic reaction, and behavioral issues such as wandering, resistance to care, sexual disinhibition, vocal disruption, and assaultive behavior.

Purpose Statement and Objectives

Registered nurses will examine best practices and enhance their ability to manage patients that exhibit behavioral challenges resulting from Alzheimer’s disease.

At the completion of this learning activity the learner will be able to:

Define Alzheimer’s disease.

Identify distressing behaviors that are common in patients with dementia.

Discuss behavioral interventions that can help to ameliorate the distressing behaviors.

Examine personal behaviors to determine how they may be contributing to the patient’s distressing behaviors.

To enroll in this course, please click the "Register" button below.

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