Value in Individuals with Early Stage Alzheimers Disease

Location

CSU North Ballroom

Start Date

24-4-2006 1:30 PM

End Date

24-4-2006 3:30 PM

Student's Major

Psychology

Student's College

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Mentor's Name

Jeffrey A. Buchanan

Mentor's Department

Psychology

Mentor's College

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Description

Much of the literature on early-stage dementia deals with either the family members or the caregivers of the afflicted individual. The goal of this study was to contribute to the very limited amount of research on dementia from the perspective of the patient. The study had two purposes. The first was to examine the experience of living with early stage dementia from the patient's perspective. The other purpose was to evaluate the values of individuals with early stage dementia to obtain more information about what is important to the specific individual. A total of 8 individuals (5 men and 3 women) participated in the study, ranging in age from 61 to 94 years. All 8 individuals completed the survey about their values, constructed by the authors, and 5 of the 8 individuals participated in the interview portion of the study. The values survey included 22 values that participants were verbally asked to rate according to how important they were in their daily life. The values survey was completed twice, each time being one week apart. The interview portion consisted of questions regarding the experience of recognizing memory difficulties and its effect on the individual's daily life. Date analysis is currently underway and involves examining trends in the rating of values between participants as well as investigating themes present across participants in the interviews. Implications of this study may involve a better understanding of how dementia affects patients and how patients cope with dementia. In addition, having a better understanding of a patient's values may enhance professional caregivers' ability to have meaningful interactions with patients and provide better care.

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Apr 24th, 1:30 PM Apr 24th, 3:30 PM

Value in Individuals with Early Stage Alzheimers Disease

CSU North Ballroom

Much of the literature on early-stage dementia deals with either the family members or the caregivers of the afflicted individual. The goal of this study was to contribute to the very limited amount of research on dementia from the perspective of the patient. The study had two purposes. The first was to examine the experience of living with early stage dementia from the patient's perspective. The other purpose was to evaluate the values of individuals with early stage dementia to obtain more information about what is important to the specific individual. A total of 8 individuals (5 men and 3 women) participated in the study, ranging in age from 61 to 94 years. All 8 individuals completed the survey about their values, constructed by the authors, and 5 of the 8 individuals participated in the interview portion of the study. The values survey included 22 values that participants were verbally asked to rate according to how important they were in their daily life. The values survey was completed twice, each time being one week apart. The interview portion consisted of questions regarding the experience of recognizing memory difficulties and its effect on the individual's daily life. Date analysis is currently underway and involves examining trends in the rating of values between participants as well as investigating themes present across participants in the interviews. Implications of this study may involve a better understanding of how dementia affects patients and how patients cope with dementia. In addition, having a better understanding of a patient's values may enhance professional caregivers' ability to have meaningful interactions with patients and provide better care.

Recommended Citation

Thisius, Lindsey A.. "Value in Individuals with Early Stage Alzheimers Disease." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 24, 2006.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2006/poster-session-C/1