2017 AHC/NCAL Annual Convention & Expo
Still a Person - Dementia's Impact on Quality of Life
We each have a unique set of circumstances that determine our quality of life (QOL). These can include environmental factors, health and well-being, socioeconomic status, and more. For the more than five million Americans who live with dementia, QOL is influenced by a completely different set of circumstances.
Dementia is often seriously misunderstood due to a lack of common language and stigma, which has a negative impact on individuals, their families and caregivers, and their QOL. This can lead to misdiagnosis, under/over treatment, and rejection.
This discussion and presentation will share the results and recommendations as a result of a roundtable dialogue on the topic hosted in 2016 by the Sodexo Institute for Quality of Life and Planetree, where experts from academia, civil society, and business gathered to share their views, knowledge and experience. The presentation will explain the challenges of and recommendations for handling dementia from the perspectives of people living with dementia, their relatives, and their caregivers. Recommendations include treating people living with dementia as just that—people, and striving to support an appropriate level of autonomy.
Learning Objectives:
- Discuss dementia including the vocabulary and the associated stigma
- Interpret how the different stages of dementia impact the Quality of Life along a continuum of change
- Identify which aspects of Quality of Life can be leveraged to mediate the impacts of dementia for those living with it, their relatives and their caregivers
- Apply evidence-based approaches to the design, care, and programs that positively impact quality of life for those living with dementia
Lori Stevic-Rust, PhD
Health Psychologist/Health Consultant
Sodexo SeniorsDisclosures: Nothing to disclose