Introduction: Course outcomes have been assessed by examining the congruence between statements of commitment to change (CTCs) and course objectives. Other forms of postcourse reflective exercises (for example, impact and unmet-needs statements) have not been examined for congruence with course objectives or their utility in assessing course…

Purpose: This study developed and tested two 24-month primary care interventions to alleviate the psychological distress suffered by the caregivers of those with Alzheimer's disease. The interventions, using targeted educational materials, were patient behavior management only, and patient behavior management plus caregiver stress-coping…

Measures developed from animal models of aging may detect dementia of the Alzheimer's type in a population at-risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Although, by middle age, individuals with Down syndrome (DS) show an extraordinarily high prevalence of AD-type pathology, their severe idiopathic cognitive deficits tend to confound the "clinical"…

Compared self- and other-rated depression in spousal caregivers for 23 Alzheimer's patients, 23 Parkinsons' Disease patients, and 23 control subjects. Two caregiver groups were similar in length of time they had been giving care and in caregiver distress and both caregiver groups were more depressed than control subjects. (Author/NB)

Reports data from nationwide survey of state mental hospitals, providing exploratory look at patients with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders currently residing in state hospitals. Describes admissions trends, reasons for admission, and sources of referral. Discusses civil commitment of nursing home patients with dementing illnesses and…

Investigated whether dementing adult day care clients demonstrated positive behaviors during activities with young children that they did not demonstrate during similar activities without children. Findings from 21 clients revealed that adults showed significant increases in touching and extending hands in presence of children, while also showing…

Evaluated the Screen for Caregiver Burden (SCB) using 191 subjects. The SCB is a 25-item measure designed to identify distressing caregiver experiences rapidly, specifically for spouse caregivers of Alzheimer's care recipients. Results demonstrated the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and validity (content, divergent, convergent, and…

Interviewed 15 male caregivers from diverse backgrounds caring for their wives with Alzheimer's disease. Found following themes: commitment, social isolation, loss of companionship, control, sense of accomplishment, problem-solving approach, burden lessening with years of caregiving, and limited expectations of children. Typology of male…

This article, based on a Lawton Award Lecture, addresses the subject of the need to enhance the evidence base in our field in order to influence processes of policy development. Four issues are identified as critical to this: theory-driven targets of public health significance, use of appropriate and sophisticated approaches to research design and…

Purpose: Our objective in this analysis was to determine how the duration of caregiving interacts with key care demands (i.e., severity of problem behaviors) to influence the institutionalization of individuals suffering from dementia. Methods: We utilized multiregional data from 4,761 caregivers of individuals with dementia over a 3-year period.…

The present study was designed to investigate the relationship between performance of limb gestures and the severity of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Apraxia tends to occur at later stages of AD, and the severity of apraxia has been shown to vary with the severity of AD dementia. Participants were 19 mild (including 9 with no cognitive impairment and…

Developed 24-item, 5-subscale Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI) as useful diagnostic tool for professional caregivers. Administered CBI to 107 caregivers of cognitively impaired older people. Individual cases illustrated that caregivers with same total burden scores can have markedly different patterns of burden and different social and…

Designed and tested battery of drawing techniques with scoring methodology appropriate for investigation of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Variables as a whole and most hypothesized drawing features provided significant discrimination between age-matched controls and AD subjects. Capability to discriminate was also provided by objective measures of use…

The Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Test (ADKT) was administered to samples of practicing nurses in the U.S. and Hong Kong. Overall, U.S. nurses were significantly more knowledgeable, but exhibited more negative bias than Hong Kong nurses. Findings suggest that nurses in both countries need more training. (JPS)

Interviewed two expert caregivers about their experiences of caring for severely demented patients. Ethical reasoning, exemplified by tender descriptions of relatedness to patients, indicated that expert caregivers used sound knowledge combined with imagination, empathy, and intuition to grasp situation, where patient is regarded as person with…